Noise Levels in Homaker Park, Bakersfield, CA | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
54 dBA
Average noise across Homaker Park
Quiet office to normal conversation
1,884
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
31% of Homaker Park residents
82 dBA
Loudest residential point
Food blender at arm’s length
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across Homaker 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 1,884 Homaker Park residents, or 30.8%, live above that level. By land area, 47.5% of Homaker Park is above 55 dBA.
52.5% below 55 dBA
47.5% above 55 dBA
See how noise in Homaker Park compares to similar-sized neighborhoods.
Noise by Part of Homaker Park
Average noise levels for Homaker Park residents, grouped by direction from the center of Homaker Park. The highest population-weighted average is in southern Homaker Park; the lowest is in northern Homaker Park, where just 25% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, about two-thirds of the share in the loudest section.
Southern Homaker Park
59.8 dBA · Loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Northeastern Homaker Park
56.6 dBA · Moderate-loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Central Homaker Park
55.6 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Northern Homaker Park
54.5 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
To the human ear, noise in southern Homaker Park sounds about 44% louder than in northern Homaker Park, a 5.3 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 82 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
82 dBA
Food blender at arm’s length
165 ft
67 dBA
Highway traffic 50 ft away
330 ft
59 dBA
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
660 ft
50 dBA
Quiet office
¼ mile
42 dBA
Quiet suburban street at night
½ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 1% of Homaker Park sits under tree canopy (much lighter than most neighborhoods) and roughly 56% 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 Homaker 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 Homaker Park
The bar chart below shows the share of Homaker Park residents in each noise band. About 68% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 4% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How Homaker Park Compares
Homaker Park sits at the quieter end of the spectrum. Below: how Homaker Park's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with Park Stockdale, College Heights Baker Street, North Country Meadows, and Hillcrest-Bakersfield.
Average noise level (dBA)
Homaker Park's 53.8 dBA pop-weighted average is at the quieter end of the spectrum. California as a whole averages 54.0 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than Homaker Park because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 30.8% of Homaker Park 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, 47.5% of Homaker Park's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a California average of 36.0% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to Homaker 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 1% of Homaker 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.
