Noise Levels in 78014, TX | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
49 dBA
Average noise across 78014
Quiet office
637
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
23% of 78014 residents
107 dBA
Loudest residential point
Power saw
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across 78014 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 637 78014 residents, or 22.8%, live above that level. By land area, 21.0% of 78014 is above 55 dBA.
79.0% below 55 dBA
21.0% above 55 dBA
See how noise in 78014 compares to similar-sized zip codes.
Noise by Part of 78014
Average noise levels for 78014 residents, grouped by direction from the center of 78014. The highest population-weighted average is in western 78014; the lowest is in southern 78014, where just 8% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, a third of the share in the loudest section.
Western 78014
61.8 dBA · Loud
Busy restaurant
Northwestern 78014
60.5 dBA · Loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Northeastern 78014
52.3 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office to normal conversation
Central 78014
52.0 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office to normal conversation
Southern 78014
49.1 dBA · Mostly quiet
Quiet office
To the human ear, noise in western 78014 sounds about 141% louder than in southern 78014, a 12.7 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 I-35 do you need to be?
I-35 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
38 dBA
Soft rainfall
½ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 1% of 78014 sits under tree canopy (much lighter than most zip codes) and roughly 27% 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 78014. 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 78014
The bar chart below shows the share of 78014 residents in each noise band. About 73% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 3% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How 78014 Compares
78014 sits the highest among the peer group. Below: how 78014's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with 78017, 78834, 78839, and 78019.
Average noise level (dBA)
78014's 48.8 dBA pop-weighted average is the highest among the peer group. Texas as a whole averages 50.8 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than 78014 because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 22.8% of 78014 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, 21.0% of 78014's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a Texas average of 22.8% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to 78014
- 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 I-35 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 1% of 78014 is under tree cover (much lighter than most 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.
