Noise Levels in Fort Washington, MD | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
52 dBA
Average noise across Fort Washington
Quiet office to normal conversation
7,213
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
20% of Fort Washington residents
84 dBA
Loudest residential point
Food blender at arm’s length
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across Fort Washington 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 7,213 Fort Washington residents, or 19.5%, live above that level. By land area, 27.0% of Fort Washington is above 55 dBA.
73.0% below 55 dBA
27.0% above 55 dBA
See how noise in Fort Washington compares to similar-sized cities.
Noise by Part of Fort Washington
Average noise levels for Fort Washington residents, grouped by direction from the center of Fort Washington. The highest population-weighted average is in central Fort Washington; the lowest is in western Fort Washington, where just 8% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, about half the share in the loudest section.
Central Fort Washington
60.1 dBA · Loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Northern Fort Washington
57.1 dBA · Moderate-loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Southwestern Fort Washington
53.0 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Eastern Fort Washington
49.5 dBA · Mostly quiet
Quiet office
Western Fort Washington
49.0 dBA · Mostly quiet
Quiet office
To the human ear, noise in central Fort Washington sounds about 116% louder than in western Fort Washington, a 11.1 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-495 do you need to be?
I-495 produces an estimated 80 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 suburban street at night.
At source
80 dBA
City bus interior
165 ft
67 dBA
Highway traffic 50 ft away
330 ft
60 dBA
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
660 ft
53 dBA
Quiet office to normal conversation
¼ mile
45 dBA
Quiet suburban street at night
½ mile
38 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 47% of Fort Washington sits under tree canopy (heavier than most cities) and roughly 19% 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
Ronald Reagan Washington Ntl (DCA) sits north of Fort Washington. 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 50 dBA on the map's Overall layer. Blocks on the opposite side of Fort Washington, particularly to the south, show no measurable aviation contribution. Use the Aviation toggle on the map above to isolate the airport's footprint.
How Noise Is Distributed Across Fort Washington
The bar chart below shows the share of Fort Washington residents in each noise band. About 87% 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 Fort Washington Compares
Fort Washington sits at the quieter end of the spectrum. Below: how Fort Washington's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with Clinton, College Park, District Heights, and Hyattsville.
Average noise level (dBA)
Fort Washington's 51.7 dBA pop-weighted average is at the quieter end of the spectrum. Maryland as a whole averages 52.3 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than Fort Washington because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 19.5% of Fort Washington residents live in blocks where outdoor levels exceed the EPA's 55 dBA threshold. That's fewer than any of its peer group. Measured by land area instead, 27.0% of Fort Washington's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a Maryland average of 32.9% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to Fort Washington
- 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-495 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 47% of Fort Washington is under tree cover (heavier than most cities), 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.
- Airport noise is directional. Ronald Reagan Washington Ntl's approach paths concentrate aviation noise to the north. Neighborhoods to the south of downtown show no measurable contribution from the airport.
