Some Paris metros are terribly unpleasant to use, not because they're late or busy (although they are), but because of the noise they make when they're running! While line 8 is certainly on the podium, line 13 takes the trophy by far, with a noise level of 102 decibels on the section near Gare Saint-Lazare, according to our colleagues in Le Parisien! A real nuisance for everyday users, but is it dangerous in the long run?
As it whizzes its passengers across the capital, line 13 emits shrill noises, sometimes lasting several seconds and quickly becoming unbearable for our eardrums. 102 decibels is quite simply equivalent to a chainsaw or a rave party, unlike the vacuum cleaner on the RER A, measured at 65.36 dB. The light blue line breaks all records, not only around the station, but also between Carrefour-Pleyel and St-Denis, and between Basilique St-Denis and St-Denis Université, with 101 decibels.
According to Bruitparif director Fanny Mietlicki, there are risks from 80 decibels, and immediate damage such as tinnitus or deafness from 105 decibels. Jean-Luc Puel, former director of the Montpellier Neuroscience Institute, adds to Le Parisien that for a 30-minute journey,"it's not dangerous", but that"peaks during braking" are.
