Noise Levels in Lake Shore, New Orleans, LA | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
54 dBA
Average noise across Lake Shore
Quiet office to normal conversation
1,475
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
40% of Lake Shore residents
65 dBA
Loudest residential point
Busy restaurant
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across Lake Shore 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 1,475 Lake Shore residents, or 40.1%, live above that level. By land area, 51.1% of Lake Shore is above 55 dBA.
48.9% below 55 dBA
51.1% above 55 dBA
See how noise in Lake Shore compares to similar-sized neighborhoods.
Noise by Part of Lake Shore
Average noise levels for Lake Shore residents, grouped by direction from the center of Lake Shore. The highest population-weighted average is in western Lake Shore; the lowest is in southeastern Lake Shore, where just 13% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, a third of the share in the loudest section.
Western Lake Shore
57.3 dBA · Moderate-loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Central Lake Shore
55.3 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Eastern Lake Shore
52.1 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office to normal conversation
Southeastern Lake Shore
52.1 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office to normal conversation
To the human ear, noise in western Lake Shore sounds about 43% louder than in southeastern Lake Shore, a 5.2 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 Lakeshore Dr do you need to be?
Lakeshore Dr produces an estimated 60 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
60 dBA
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
165 ft
46 dBA
Quiet suburban street at night
330 ft
38 dBA
Soft rainfall
660 ft
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
¼ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
½ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 10% of Lake Shore sits under tree canopy (lighter than most neighborhoods) and roughly 49% 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
Louis Armstrong New Orleans International (MSY) sits west of Lake Shore. 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 Lake Shore, 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 Lake Shore
The bar chart below shows the share of Lake Shore residents in each noise band. About 71% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 6% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How Lake Shore Compares
Lake Shore sits at the quieter end of the spectrum. Below: how Lake Shore's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with Saint Anthony, Lake Terrace and Oaks, West End, and Milneburg.
Average noise level (dBA)
Lake Shore's 53.9 dBA pop-weighted average is at the quieter end of the spectrum. Louisiana as a whole averages 50.7 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than Lake Shore because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 40.1% of Lake Shore 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, 51.1% of Lake Shore's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a Louisiana average of 28.9% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to Lake Shore
- 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 Lakeshore Dr 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 10% of Lake Shore is under tree cover (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.
- Airport noise is directional. Louis Armstrong New Orleans International's approach paths concentrate aviation noise to the west. Neighborhoods to the east of downtown show no measurable contribution from the airport.
