Noise Levels in Downtown Troy, Troy, NY | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
58 dBA
Average noise across Downtown Troy
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
3,920
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
67% of Downtown Troy residents
76 dBA
Loudest residential point
City bus interior
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across Downtown Troy 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 3,920 Downtown Troy residents, or 67.0%, live above that level. By land area, 84.4% of Downtown Troy is above 55 dBA.
15.6% below 55 dBA
84.4% above 55 dBA
See how noise in Downtown Troy compares to similar-sized neighborhoods.
Noise by Part of Downtown Troy
Average noise levels for Downtown Troy residents, grouped by direction from the center of Downtown Troy. The highest population-weighted average is in northern Downtown Troy; the lowest is in eastern Downtown Troy, where just 26% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, a third of the share in the loudest section.
Northern Downtown Troy
63.9 dBA · Loud
Busy restaurant
Southern Downtown Troy
62.6 dBA · Loud
Busy restaurant
Southwestern Downtown Troy
59.1 dBA · Loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Southeastern Downtown Troy
57.2 dBA · Moderate-loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Eastern Downtown Troy
54.0 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
To the human ear, noise in northern Downtown Troy sounds about 99% louder than in eastern Downtown Troy, a 9.9 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 State Rte 7 do you need to be?
State Rte 7 produces an estimated 71 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
71 dBA
Highway traffic 50 ft away
165 ft
57 dBA
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
330 ft
48 dBA
Quiet office
660 ft
40 dBA
Soft rainfall
¼ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
½ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 11% of Downtown Troy sits under tree canopy (about average for neighborhoods) and roughly 72% 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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Airport Noise
Albany International (ALB) sits west of Downtown Troy. The U.S. Department of Transportation models aviation noise around this airport from federal traffic data, 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 55 dBA on the map's Overall layer. Blocks on the opposite side of Downtown Troy, particularly to the east, show no measurable aviation contribution. Use the Aviation toggle on the map above to isolate the airport's footprint.
How Noise Is Distributed Across Downtown Troy
The bar chart below shows the share of Downtown Troy residents in each noise band. About 23% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 40% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How Downtown Troy Compares
Downtown Troy sits at the quieter end of the spectrum. Below: how Downtown Troy's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with West Hill, Arbor Hill, Delaware Avenue, and Buckingham Lake-Crestwood.
Average noise level (dBA)
Downtown Troy's 58.2 dBA pop-weighted average is at the quieter end of the spectrum. New York as a whole averages 55.4 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than Downtown Troy because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 67.0% of Downtown Troy 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, 84.4% of Downtown Troy's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a New York average of 30.9% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to Downtown Troy
- 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 State Rte 7 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 11% of Downtown Troy is under tree cover (about average for neighborhoods), and the dominant land cover is high-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. Albany International's approach paths concentrate aviation noise to the west. Neighborhoods to the east of downtown show no measurable contribution from the airport.
