A pragmatic approach to deal with amplified music from pubs/bars/restaurants in Hong Kong

摘要

Hong Kong is one of the densest cities in the world with highly compacted urban settings and predominantly mixed commercial/residential uses. It has been a challenging task to put different noise sources under legislative control while striking a balance between the interests of commercial activities and the need for a tranquil environment. As with other Asian cities such as Seoul, Tokyo and Taipei, upstairs pubs/bars and restaurants situated in multi-storey buildings in addition to those at street level have become popular. Noise from musical activities (such as karaoke, live music) inside these establishments can generate annoyance by propagating through building structures to the adjacent flats while chatting of patrons at street level could also cause disturbance. On the other hand, people's tolerance with respect to these noises may vary among individuals and also depend on the time of disturbance. The use of purely objective criteria as adopted for most other commercial or industrial activities may not be effective and practical enough, in particular, when the transmitted components are of very low frequency, and sporadic in nature during the mid-night hours. This paper will discuss on (a) the pragmatic approach currently adopted to control night-time music noise with an "inaudibility" criterion, which is subjective in nature, to complement a set of objective criteria for daytime; (b) relevant preventive measures imposed through liquor licensing; and (c) some successful abatement measures as illustration.