Background Over 25% of Europeans are exposed to excessive levels of noise. Noise can have significant negative effects on human health causing, inter alia, hypertension, stress, hearing difficulties, reduced learning capacity in young children, and sleeplessness. The total noise-related social cost in Europe is estimated to be between €13 and 38 billion per year, an amount which includes depreciation in property value, medical costs, and the loss of working days. The new European directive on the assessment and management of environmental noise (Directive 2002/49/EC of 25 June 2002 regarding the measurement and management of ambient noise) requires all cities with populations of over 100,000 (approximately 50% of the European population) to produce action plans for the management of noise, and to adopt policies aimed at reducing the level of noise to which citizens are exposed. Objectives The GIpSyNOISE project aimed to produce a tool to enable local planners and decision-makers to respond to the requirements of Directive 2002/49/EC regarding ambient noise. The software tool to be developed should support decision-making by: • introducing the standard models described in the EC Directive for the estimation of noise emitted by road, rail, aircraft and industry; • suggesting cross-correlations between noise and geo-referenced city management data; • improving the detailed modelling of noise nuisance; and • proposing relevant indicators for assessing noise-related management. The project was proposed by the Municipality of Lyon, and the test version of the software would also be tested by partner cities in Spain (Barcelona, Huelva), Italy (Rome), Portugal (Porto), the Czech Republic (Prague) and Hungary (Szeged). Results The project successfully achieved its objectives. The multifunctional GIpSyNOISE software developed by the project offers decision-making support related to the application of Directive 2002/49/EC. The software has been installed in the nine towns that acted as partners to the project. These towns have a combined population of over 8 million people and thanks to the software they are ahead of schedule in the implementation of the Directive. GIpSyNOISE covers the areas of strategy development, action-plan design and communication. It allows existing data on traffic, road surfaces, building usage, etc., to be used by municipal authorities to carry-out their own noise assessments. The GIS-based component allows the identification of ‘black spot’ areas of high noise pollution, as well as the possibility of testing the noise impact of different types of urban developments. It therefore serves decision-makers in making status quo assessments, as well as for the simulation of future developments. In addition, the tool allows a cross-referencing of noise-related and socio-economic data, allowing the integration of noise pollution considerations into the design of new town-planning projects. The software’s flexible design allows a future compatibility and integration with traffic and air-pollution management tools, as well as its potential adaptation to fit future amendments in legislation. The project has made the software and the source codes available through the website of ADULLACT (l’Association des utilisateurs de logiciels libres pour l’administration). Users can therefore download the software free of charge and adapt it (at their own cost) for their own needs. The user manual accompanying the software is clear and user-friendly. Furthermore, the project’s dissemination activities were excellent, and resulted in the sharing of information on an international level. Such initiatives confirm the willingness of the project team to allow the maximum number of users to benefit from this project. The main obstacle to the complete application of the software is the availability of data. Data on traffic, road surfaces, building usage and population, for example, are not always readily available and often dispersed between different administrations within the same municipality.