Universal Studios to dampen 'disturbing' coaster screams with sound barriers
Los Angeles Times • • entertainment
Key Points:
- Universal Studios Hollywood will install two additional sound barriers to address noise complaints from nearby residents about its new roller coaster, Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift, which has been criticized for loud rider screams.
- The coaster is currently in a testing phase called "technical rehearsals," operating intermittently, with plans to run from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. through August and until 10 p.m. starting September 3 during Halloween Horror Nights.
- Despite previous noise mitigation efforts such as sound walls and scream shields, residents in the Toluca Lake neighborhood report that the screams during guest testing have become "untenable" and disturbing.
- Universal and the Toluca Lake Homeowners Association plan to hold a community meeting, and construction of the new sound barriers is expected to be completed by early September.
- Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift, a decade-long engineering project located between the park's upper and lower lots, is also important to Universal Studios as it operates a working studio nearby and aims to limit noise disruptions.
