Greetings –
Bill Wei, a scientist with the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands (RCE) Amsterdam, The Netherlands, has published several studies on vibrations and vibration limits for collections. Here is the link to a paper he presented at the 2014 ICOM-CC Triennial Meetings, held in Melbourne, Australia: https://www.icom-cc-publications-online.org/PublicationDetail.aspx?cid=e1d9f03d-2fde-458b-a31e-93009c9acbef. This is available for a free download. Since 2014, Bill has presented additional research results at various conferences including the IIC meetings last year in Turin. Here's a link to his presentation from that meeting: https://doi.org/10.1080/00393630.2018.1504438.
Others have published useful information on vibration monitoring during construction. Last year, ARCS, AIC and WJE co-sponsored a webinar on Vibration Control during construction projects and highlighted efforts made at the Art Institute of Chicago and the Kemper Art Museum.
While vibration from traffic is an issue, I would also be concerned about additional hazards associated with locating your museum at the site. These include gaseous and particulate pollutants from automotive exhausts, particulate pollutants generated by tire abrasion (the GCI studied this several years ago), and whether hazardous materials are transported over the adjacent highways.
I hope this information is helpful.
Wendy Claire Jessup
Conservator
Wendy Jessup and Associates, Inc.
Care of Cultural Property
4620 Lee Highway, Suite 206
Arlington, VA 22207
(703) 522-2801 ext. 1
Art is not an adornment to society. It is not a luxury. It is the purpose of society. It becomes our legacy. It is also, however, our teacher; it helps us consider that which is around us and what we want to be. It makes demands on us that in turn lead us to place demands on ourselves and those with whom we live and work. David Rothkopf, Foreign Policy, 2/22/2017
Original Message------
Jennifer, I'm not aware of a study mesuring the affect of vibration on artifacts over time, but I can tell you that it's fairly easy to measure various types of vibration at a particular location and then design a building to accommodate it. The real question is whether decision-makers want to spend their money on this issue or if they prioritize something else, but if you collect data showing that logging trucks are shaking the whole site, that's compelling. Good luck!