Bloomsbury Soundscape Database: Urban Soundscape Investigation and Participatory Design Database with Acoustic and Contextual Information

This repository contains two complementary datasets generated within a three-year (2023-2025) investigation of urban soundscapes and participatory soundscape design conducted in central London. The first dataset comprises soundscape assessments collected from 2023 to 2025. The second dataset contains data from a participatory soundscape design study conducted in 2025, informed by and building upon findings from the preceding soundscape investigation. Soundscape Investigation Dataset The first dataset contains the results of soundscape assessments conducted through an adapted soundwalk protocol with structured questionnaires, following ISO/TS 12913-2:2018 Method A [1]. Data collection captures in situ subjective evaluations of the acoustic environment alongside contextual and demographic information. Acoustic measurements and derived indicators accompany perceptual evaluations, following the reporting requirements set out in the ISO/TS 12913 series. These data provide baseline empirical observations of soundscape perception in public urban spaces and informed the design of the subsequent participatory soundscape experiment. Participatory Soundscape Design Dataset The second dataset contains data from a participatory soundscape design study conducted in 2025, following and informed by observations from the 2023–2025 soundscape investigation. The study comprised two sequential stages: a participatory soundscape design workshop, in which participants collaboratively developed alternative soundscape intervention proposals using an interactive audio-visual simulation tool and acoustic metamaterial (AMM) interventions; and a soundscape design assessment workshop, in which soundscape experts evaluated the proposed designs through structured soundscape appraisal tasks. The overall experimental protocol follows the emerging ISO/TS 12913-4 (Design and Intervention), while the data collection and analysis procedures for soundscape assessment adhere to ISO/TS 12913-2 [1] and ISO/TS 12913-3 [2]. [1] ISO/TS 12913-2:2018 (2018). “Acoustics – Soundscape – Part 2: Data collection and reporting requirements” International Organization for Standardization, Geneva, Switzerland, 2018 [2] ISO/TS 12913-3:2019 (2019). “Acoustics — Soundscape — Part 3: Data Analysis” International Organization for Standardization, Geneva, Switzerland, 2019