Sleepless nights due to MRT construction

I live about 100m away from the construction site for the upcoming Upper Thomson MRT station.

Loud piling work goes on from 10pm at night until 6am the following morning on an almost daily basis, even though National Environment Agency (NEA) regulations state that construction noise should not exceed 55 decibels between 10pm and 7am if there are residential buildings located less than 150m from the construction site.

A quick Internet check revealed that noise from pile-driving registers at around 110 decibels.

The piling noise is also intermittent in nature - at five- to 10-second intervals - making it more disruptive than the constant drone of, say, a moderately loud generator.

Even with the windows tightly shut, air-conditioner on and earplugs in, I am unable to sleep because of the overnight piling works.

Sleep deprivation has a serious impact on health, both in the short term and in the long term. The main effect is excessive daytime sleepiness, which can lead to traffic accidents and workplace injuries.

Other effects include anxiety, forgetfulness, distractedness, decreased performance and alertness, memory and cognitive impairment and added stress on relationships.

Long-term effects include high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke, obesity and psychiatric problems, including depression and other mood disorders.

Recently, researchers found that chronic sleep disturbances could speed up the onset of dementia and Alzheimer's disease in older adults.

I am wondering how this "pollutive" situation has been allowed to happen, and why it persists despite frequent complaints made over several months to parties involved, namely the Land Transport Authority, the Sato Kogyo construction company and the NEA.

Can the organisations' respective heads offer an explanation and a truly effective solution to help those affected?

Tracy Lee Hwei Yin (Ms)

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