Noise Levels in College Park, College Station, TX | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
59 dBA
Average noise across College Park
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
1,258
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
28% of College Park residents
89 dBA
Loudest residential point
Lawnmower at 1 m
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across College Park 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 1,258 College Park residents, or 27.5%, live above that level. By land area, 43.8% of College Park is above 55 dBA.
56.2% below 55 dBA
43.8% above 55 dBA
See how noise in College Park compares to similar-sized neighborhoods.
Noise by Part of College Park
Average noise levels for College Park residents, grouped by direction from the center of College Park. The highest population-weighted average is in central College Park; the lowest is in northwestern College Park, where just 20% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, about two-thirds of the share in the loudest section.
Central College Park
69.0 dBA · Loud
Highway traffic 50 ft away
Southeastern College Park
59.1 dBA · Loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Northern College Park
55.8 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Northwestern College Park
55.5 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
To the human ear, noise in central College Park sounds about 155% louder than in northwestern College Park, a 13.5 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 89 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 quiet office.
At source
89 dBA
Lawnmower at 1 m
165 ft
74 dBA
City bus interior
330 ft
66 dBA
Busy restaurant
660 ft
57 dBA
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
¼ mile
49 dBA
Quiet office
½ mile
40 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 4% of College Park sits under tree canopy (much lighter than most neighborhoods) and roughly 55% 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 College Park. 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 College Park
The bar chart below shows the share of College Park residents in each noise band. About 49% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 48% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How College Park Compares
College Park sits the highest among the peer group. Below: how College Park's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with Northgate, Southwood Valley, Disaster City, and Midway Place.
Average noise level (dBA)
College Park's 59.1 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 College Park because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 27.5% of College Park residents live in blocks where outdoor levels exceed the EPA's 55 dBA threshold. That's in the middle of its peer group. Measured by land area instead, 43.8% of College Park'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 College Park
- 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 4% of College Park is under tree cover (much lighter than most neighborhoods), 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.
