Noise Levels in 46590, IN | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
54 dBA
Average noise across 46590
Quiet office to normal conversation
1,614
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
36% of 46590 residents
65 dBA
Loudest residential point
Busy restaurant
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across 46590 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 1,614 46590 residents, or 36.2%, live above that level. By land area, 51.2% of 46590 is above 55 dBA.
48.8% below 55 dBA
51.2% above 55 dBA
See how noise in 46590 compares to similar-sized zip codes.
Noise by Part of 46590
Average noise levels for 46590 residents, grouped by direction from the center of 46590. The highest population-weighted average is in northwestern 46590; the lowest is in eastern 46590, where just 20% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, about half the share in the loudest section.
Northwestern 46590
58.4 dBA · Loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Northern 46590
54.1 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Southern 46590
53.9 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Southwestern 46590
53.9 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Eastern 46590
53.0 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
To the human ear, noise in northwestern 46590 sounds about 45% louder than in eastern 46590, a 5.4 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 do you need to be?
produces an estimated 65 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
65 dBA
Busy restaurant
165 ft
52 dBA
Quiet office to normal conversation
330 ft
44 dBA
Quiet suburban street at night
660 ft
36 dBA
Soft rainfall
¼ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
½ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 28% of 46590 sits under tree canopy (about average for zip codes) and roughly 23% 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 46590. 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.
How Noise Is Distributed Across 46590
The bar chart below shows the share of 46590 residents in each noise band. About 56% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 6% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How 46590 Compares
46590 sits the highest among the peer group. Below: how 46590's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with 46562, 46538, 46542, and 46510.
Average noise level (dBA)
46590's 54.3 dBA pop-weighted average is the highest among the peer group. Indiana as a whole averages 53.8 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than 46590 because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 36.2% of 46590 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, 51.2% of 46590's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a Indiana average of 37.8% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to 46590
- 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 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 28% of 46590 is under tree cover (about average for zip codes), and the dominant land cover is low-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.
