PHOENIX — The new part of Loop 202, or the South Mountain Freeway, has been open for about three weeks, making an easier commute for drivers going across the Valley.
But people who live by the new highway say it's not what they expected when it comes to noise and traffic.
"In some respects it’s a great thing," Gary Quinones explained. "In my situation, it’s bad because it’s right in my backyard."
The new freeway is not the view Quinones had when he and his family moved in 14 years ago.
The sound wall goes right behind his yard and his homeowners association is building another wall to set boundaries.
Quinones said he knew there would be noise, especially after years of construction, but the finished product is posing even more problems.
"It is noisier than what a lot of people anticipated," he said.
Carl Noble lives a few blocks over from Quinones. He said noise from the vehicles going by echoes through the neighborhoods.
"At times when there’s semis going by, it sounds like a propeller airplane coming through," he said. "It just kind of vibrates and rumbles."
Not everyone who talked to 12 News said they were bothered by the traffic, but many living near the South Mountain Freeway hope the new noise isn't just part of a new normal.
ADOT says when they original tested the area for sound, their results were within guidelines.
But due to the high volume of noise complaints the department has received since the road opened, ADOT is testing again. They started Thursday morning, monitoring rush hour traffic.
"What is the loudest?" spokesman Tom Herrmann said, referring to what officials are looking for. "Are we within the guidelines, are we not? Is there something we need to do to continue mitigating the noise?"
Federal rules say the noise can't be more than 64 decimals.
Early ADOT results show they're under that level, but officials are going to keep testing at different times in different spots to see if there needs to be any more changes made.
A possible fix could be modifying the noise wall, but that decision would be based on results of the most recent noise tests.