Over the past two decades there have been many major new developments in the field of urban sound environment. Jian Kang introduces and examines these key developments, including:the development of prediction methods for urban sound propagationestablishment and application of noise-mapping softwarenew noise control measures and design methods.Also covered is the new EU directive on noise and the substantial actions it has brought about across Europe.As the importance of soundscape, acoustic comfort and sound environment design have become widely recognized,