Noise Levels in Neighbors Southwest, Beaverton, OR | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
54 dBA
Average noise across Neighbors Southwest
Quiet office to normal conversation
4,140
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
36% of Neighbors Southwest residents
69 dBA
Loudest residential point
Highway traffic 50 ft away
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across Neighbors Southwest 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 4,140 Neighbors Southwest residents, or 35.9%, live above that level. By land area, 40.5% of Neighbors Southwest is above 55 dBA.
59.5% below 55 dBA
40.5% above 55 dBA
See how noise in Neighbors Southwest compares to similar-sized neighborhoods.
Noise by Part of Neighbors Southwest
Average noise levels for Neighbors Southwest residents, grouped by direction from the center of Neighbors Southwest. The highest population-weighted average is in central Neighbors Southwest; the lowest is in eastern Neighbors Southwest, where just 34% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, roughly the same as the share in the loudest section.
Central Neighbors Southwest
55.3 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Northeastern Neighbors Southwest
55.3 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Western Neighbors Southwest
54.9 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Southeastern Neighbors Southwest
53.8 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Eastern Neighbors Southwest
53.4 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
To the human ear, noise in central Neighbors Southwest sounds about 14% louder than in eastern Neighbors Southwest, a 1.9 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 Oregon Route 210 do you need to be?
Oregon Route 210 produces an estimated 67 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
67 dBA
Highway traffic 50 ft away
165 ft
53 dBA
Quiet office to normal conversation
330 ft
46 dBA
Quiet suburban street at night
660 ft
38 dBA
Soft rainfall
¼ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
½ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 37% of Neighbors Southwest sits under tree canopy (much heavier than most neighborhoods) and roughly 47% 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
Portland International (PDX) sits northeast of Neighbors Southwest. 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 Neighbors Southwest, particularly to the southwest, show no measurable aviation contribution. Use the Aviation toggle on the map above to isolate the airport's footprint.
How Noise Is Distributed Across Neighbors Southwest
The bar chart below shows the share of Neighbors Southwest residents in each noise band. About 66% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 5% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How Neighbors Southwest Compares
Neighbors Southwest sits at the quieter end of the spectrum. Below: how Neighbors Southwest's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with Sexton Mountain, Cedar Hills-Cedar Mill North, West Beaverton, and Sherwood-Tualatin North.
Average noise level (dBA)
Neighbors Southwest's 54.1 dBA pop-weighted average is at the quieter end of the spectrum. Oregon as a whole averages 52.9 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than Neighbors Southwest because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 35.9% of Neighbors Southwest 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, 40.5% of Neighbors Southwest's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a Oregon average of 24.2% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to Neighbors Southwest
- 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 Oregon Route 210 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 37% of Neighbors Southwest is under tree cover (much heavier 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. Portland International's approach paths concentrate aviation noise to the northeast. Neighborhoods to the southwest of downtown show no measurable contribution from the airport.
