Noise Levels in Coolidge Corner, Brookline, MA | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
58 dBA
Average noise across Coolidge Corner
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
4,252
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
59% of Coolidge Corner residents
68 dBA
Loudest residential point
Highway traffic 50 ft away
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across Coolidge Corner 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 4,252 Coolidge Corner residents, or 59.3%, live above that level. By land area, 68.7% of Coolidge Corner is above 55 dBA.
31.3% below 55 dBA
68.7% above 55 dBA
See how noise in Coolidge Corner compares to similar-sized neighborhoods.
Noise by Part of Coolidge Corner
Average noise levels for Coolidge Corner residents, grouped by direction from the center of Coolidge Corner. The highest population-weighted average is in northeastern Coolidge Corner; the lowest is in southeastern Coolidge Corner, where just 60% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, roughly the same as the share in the loudest section.
Northeastern Coolidge Corner
60.9 dBA · Loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Central Coolidge Corner
59.5 dBA · Loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Southwestern Coolidge Corner
58.8 dBA · Loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Southeastern Coolidge Corner
58.4 dBA · Loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
To the human ear, noise in northeastern Coolidge Corner sounds about 19% louder than in southeastern Coolidge Corner, a 2.5 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 68 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
68 dBA
Highway traffic 50 ft away
165 ft
54 dBA
Quiet office to normal conversation
330 ft
46 dBA
Quiet office
660 ft
38 dBA
Soft rainfall
¼ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
½ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 13% of Coolidge Corner sits under tree canopy (about average for neighborhoods) and roughly 70% 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.
-->
Rail Noise
Active freight rail runs through parts of Coolidge Corner. 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 east of Coolidge Corner. 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 75 dBA on the map's Overall layer. Blocks on the opposite side of Coolidge Corner, particularly to the west, show no measurable aviation contribution. Use the Aviation toggle on the map above to isolate the airport's footprint.
How Noise Is Distributed Across Coolidge Corner
The bar chart below shows the share of Coolidge Corner residents in each noise band. About 28% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 33% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How Coolidge Corner Compares
Coolidge Corner sits the highest among the peer group. Below: how Coolidge Corner's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with Brookline Village Commercial District, West Cambridge, East Watertown, and Avon Hill.
Average noise level (dBA)
Coolidge Corner's 58.5 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 Coolidge Corner because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 59.3% of Coolidge Corner 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, 68.7% of Coolidge Corner'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 Coolidge Corner
- 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 13% of Coolidge Corner is under tree cover (about average for 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.
- Airport noise is directional. General Edward Lawrence Logan International's approach paths concentrate aviation noise to the east. Neighborhoods to the west of downtown show no measurable contribution from the airport.
