Noise Levels in 01843, MA | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
57 dBA
Average noise across 01843
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
13,417
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
62% of 01843 residents
88 dBA
Loudest residential point
Lawnmower at 1 m
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across 01843 at 100-meter resolution, combining road, aviation, and rail sources. Green areas measure below 45 dBA. Orange and red exceed the EPA's 55 dBA outdoor threshold linked to long-term health effects. Use the layer toggles to view each source on its own or all together.
What the numbers sound like
- 30 dBAWhisper
- 40 dBASoft rainfall
- 45 dBAQuiet suburban street at night
- 50 dBAQuiet office
- 55 dBAEPA outdoor threshold: light traffic 100 ft away
- 60 dBANormal conversation an arm's length away
- 65 dBABusy restaurant
- 70 dBAHighway traffic 50 ft away
- 80 dBACity bus interior
Population Above the EPA Outdoor Threshold
The EPA's 55 dBA outdoor reference level is a common benchmark for residential noise exposure, especially for activity interference, annoyance, and long-term community noise concerns. About 13,417 01843 residents, or 62.0%, live above that level. By land area, 63.4% of 01843 is above 55 dBA.
36.6% below 55 dBA
63.4% above 55 dBA
See how noise in 01843 compares to similar-sized zip codes.
Noise by Part of 01843
Average noise levels for 01843 residents, grouped by direction from the center of 01843. The highest population-weighted average is in southeastern 01843; the lowest is in western 01843, where just 33% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, about half the share in the loudest section.
Southeastern 01843
67.0 dBA · Loud
Highway traffic 50 ft away
Eastern 01843
66.0 dBA · Loud
Busy restaurant
Central 01843
60.6 dBA · Loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Southwestern 01843
55.3 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Western 01843
53.8 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
To the human ear, noise in southeastern 01843 sounds about 150% louder than in western 01843, a 13.2 dBA gap. Every 10 dBA roughly doubles perceived loudness. Within any of these directions, two homes a quarter mile apart can still differ by 10 or more dBA depending on how close they sit to a major highway.
How far back from Blue Star Memorial Hwy do you need to be?
Blue Star Memorial Hwy produces an estimated 77 dBA at its loudest centerline points. Noise drops logarithmically with distance, with the exact rate depending on what's between you and the road. Tree cover, walls, terrain, and pavement type all matter. At roughly a quarter mile back, traffic fades into the noise level of a soft rainfall.
At source
77 dBA
City bus interior
165 ft
63 dBA
Busy restaurant
330 ft
55 dBA
Quiet office to normal conversation
660 ft
47 dBA
Quiet office
¼ mile
39 dBA
Soft rainfall
½ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 23% of 01843 sits under tree canopy (about average for zip codes) and roughly 59% is impervious surface like pavement and rooftops. Both are folded into the per-place decay rate above. Heavier canopy pulls noise down faster with distance; impervious surfaces slow the drop.
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Rail Noise
Active freight rail runs through parts of 01843. For most blocks the rail-only contribution is small. Combined road-plus-rail noise rarely exceeds road noise on its own. The exceptions are the handful of blocks within roughly a quarter mile of the right-of-way during pass-through hours.
Use the Rail toggle on the map above to isolate rail's contribution from road and aviation.
Airport Noise
General Edward Lawrence Logan International (BOS) sits south of 01843. The U.S. Department of Transportation measures aviation noise around this airport directly, and the model uses those federal measurements rather than synthetic predictions.
Blocks under the approach and departure paths carry combined road-plus-aviation noise, with some exceeding 50 dBA on the map's Overall layer. Blocks on the opposite side of 01843, particularly to the north, show no measurable aviation contribution. Use the Aviation toggle on the map above to isolate the airport's footprint.
How Noise Is Distributed Across 01843
The bar chart below shows the share of 01843 residents in each noise band. About 34% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 19% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How 01843 Compares
01843 sits the highest among the peer group. Below: how 01843's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with 01832, 01887, 01830, and 01845.
Average noise level (dBA)
01843's 56.8 dBA pop-weighted average is the highest among the peer group. Massachusetts as a whole averages 54.3 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than 01843 because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 62.0% of 01843 residents live in blocks where outdoor levels exceed the EPA's 55 dBA threshold. That's more than any of its peer group. Measured by land area instead, 63.4% of 01843's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a Massachusetts average of 40.0% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to 01843
- Distance from highways matters more than the neighborhood name. Two homes in the same zip code can differ by 20 dBA if one sits 100 meters from Blue Star Memorial Hwy and the other 500 meters away. The model captures this at 100-meter resolution, so noise exposure changes block by block.
- Tree canopy can help reduce modeled noise exposure. Roughly 23% of 01843 is under tree cover (about average for zip codes), and the dominant land cover is medium-intensity developed land. Both are measured from federal USDA Forest Service and USGS satellite imagery at 30-meter resolution. Streets with 60% or higher canopy show 3 to 5 dBA lower noise than comparable streets with bare ground or pavement, which is why the per-place decay rate above already accounts for it.
- Airport noise is directional. General Edward Lawrence Logan International's approach paths concentrate aviation noise to the south. Neighborhoods to the north of downtown show no measurable contribution from the airport.
