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June 01, 2023 - 7:30 AM
More than half of Canadians say their town or city has gotten noisier over the past year.
According to a May 20 Research Co. poll, 54% of Canadians believe their city or town has become noisier over the past year, jumping to 61% for BC residents, on par with Ontario and Alberta.
Half of Quebeckers think their city or town is noisier, while 45% of Atlantic Canadians say the same, with Saskatchewan and Manitoba dropping slightly to 44%.
The poll found that one-third of Canadians think their own home is now noisier than last year, while 43% say their street is noisier.
One-third of Canadians say in the last year that they've been bothered by unnecessary noise from vehicles –such as motorcycles and cars revving up – while inside their homes.
The other two main annoyances are dog barking – which 30% say they've encountered – and construction noise, which 29% have been bothered with.
Other disturbances range from loud people outside (23%), car alarms (22%), loud music from vehicles (22%), and loud music from nearby homes (21%). Drivers honking their horns excessively has also disturbed 21% of Canadians.
Others doing yardwork doesn't bother people as much, but 20% say they'd been disturbed by lawnmowers and leaf blowers. Powertools have disturbed 19% of Canadians.
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Twenty percent of Canadians say yelling or screaming at a nearby home has bothered them, and the same number of people say they've been disturbed by fireworks.
A large party nearby has affected 16%, while a home alarm has disturbed 11%.
Surprisingly, seven percent of Canadian have been bothered by a cat meowing.
Six percent say they'd moved house because of noise.
And people are started to be more vocal about undue noise.
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"The proportion of Canadians who have not taken any action to deal with noise inside their home has fallen from 74% in 2022 to 67% in 2023," Research Co. president Mario Canseco says in a press release. "Canadians aged 18-to-34 are more likely to be wearing earplugs or acquiring special hardware to mitigate noise."
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