The study completed by Jacobs Consultancy, which began in 2000 at the insistence of area residents who wanted to reduce noise, indicates that the cost-effectiveness of banning flights between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. would save $67 million over 10 years. The savings would result from fewer demands for sound insulation in nearby houses and fewer costs to aviation and cargo services, Gill said.
The curfew would prevent even newer, quieter jets built since the 1980s from departing from or landing at Bob Hope Airport overnight. Under the mandatory ban, only military, law enforcement and other emergency flights would be allowed to operate at night, Gill said.
“We already have a voluntary curfew at night and most of the flights at night are private planes and cargo carriers, so there wouldn’t be much conflict with major commercial carriers,” Gill said.
In an ongoing effort to alleviate noise, Rep. Brad Sherman announced a $7-million grant in federal money Tuesday to fund insulation in neighborhoods around Bob Hope Airport. Approximately $84 million in federal money, including the new grant, has been awarded for noise mitigation.
“I am thankful that the Department of Transportation shares my commitment to improving the quality of life for Burbank residents by helping to mitigate the noise from aircraft,” Sherman said.
The airport has fitted about 1,400 homes for noise insulation since 1997, and 206 more homes are slated for the process, Gill said.
“By picking away at the problem house by house, we plan to reduce the acreage of noise impact to zero by about 2011,” Gill said. “You can’t insulate a house where the owners aren’t interested, and we’re trying to engage a few that haven’t responded to our inquiries.”
Once the noise reduction work is complete on a house, the current homeowner signs an agreement that bars future owners from suing the airport for noise issues.
Despite the support around Burbank for an evening curfew, Mayor Dave Golonski had to court another key player in the region Tuesday when he met with Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who opposes the existing proposal for Bob Hope Airport.
Villaraigosa is against the project because he fears flight scheduling conflicts, but would be open to working out an arrangement with airport staff in Van Nuys, Burbank and Los Angeles, Golonski said. The Van Nuys Regional Airport is also seeking a nighttime flight ban.
“We have common goals of seeking noise relief for the San Fernando Valley residents,” Golonski said.
