Noise Levels in Jacinto City, TX | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map

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 2,385 Jacinto City residents, or 44.8%, live above that level. By land area, 46.9% of Jacinto City is above 55 dBA.

See how noise in Jacinto City compares to similar-sized cities.

Noise by Part of Jacinto City

Average noise levels for Jacinto City residents, grouped by direction from the center of Jacinto City. The highest population-weighted average is in northwestern Jacinto City; the lowest is in southeastern Jacinto City, where just 29% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, about two-thirds of the share in the loudest section.

To the human ear, noise in northwestern Jacinto City sounds about 69% louder than in southeastern Jacinto City, a 7.6 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.

Rail Noise

Active freight rail runs through parts of Jacinto City. 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

William P Hobby (HOU) sits south of Jacinto City. 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 65 dBA on the map's Overall layer. Blocks on the opposite side of Jacinto City, particularly to the north, show no measurable aviation contribution. Use the Aviation toggle on the map above to isolate the airport's footprint.

How Noise Is Distributed Across Jacinto City

The bar chart below shows the share of Jacinto City residents in each noise band. About 50% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 0% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.

How Jacinto City Compares

Jacinto City sits at the quieter end of the spectrum. Below: how Jacinto City's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with Galena Park, West University Place, South Houston, and Piney Point Village.

Average noise level (dBA)

Jacinto City's 53.7 dBA pop-weighted average is at the quieter end of the spectrum. Texas as a whole averages 50.8 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than Jacinto City because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.

Share of residents above 55 dBA

About 44.8% of Jacinto City residents live in blocks where outdoor levels exceed the EPA's 55 dBA threshold. That's more than any of its peer group. Measured by land area instead, 46.9% of Jacinto City'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 Jacinto City

• 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-10 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 15% of Jacinto City is under tree cover (lighter 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. William P Hobby's approach paths concentrate aviation noise to the south. Neighborhoods to the north of downtown show no measurable contribution from the airport.

Sources & Methodology