Noise Levels in North Alameda, Lakewood, CO | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
55 dBA
Average noise across North Alameda
Quiet office to normal conversation
2,535
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
49% of North Alameda residents
71 dBA
Loudest residential point
City bus interior
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across North Alameda 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 2,535 North Alameda residents, or 49.4%, live above that level. By land area, 51.5% of North Alameda is above 55 dBA.
48.5% below 55 dBA
51.5% above 55 dBA
See how noise in North Alameda compares to similar-sized neighborhoods.
Noise by Part of North Alameda
Average noise levels for North Alameda residents, grouped by direction from the center of North Alameda. The highest population-weighted average is in northwestern North Alameda; the lowest is in southern North Alameda, where just 20% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, about half the share in the loudest section.
Northwestern North Alameda
61.3 dBA · Loud
Busy restaurant
Northern North Alameda
60.6 dBA · Loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Eastern North Alameda
58.2 dBA · Loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Southwestern North Alameda
55.3 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Southern North Alameda
52.3 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office to normal conversation
To the human ear, noise in northwestern North Alameda sounds about 87% louder than in southern North Alameda, a 9.0 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 71 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
71 dBA
City bus interior
165 ft
57 dBA
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
330 ft
49 dBA
Quiet office
660 ft
41 dBA
Quiet suburban street at night
¼ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
½ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 8% of North Alameda sits under tree canopy (lighter than most neighborhoods) and roughly 45% 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
Denver International (DEN) sits northeast of North Alameda. 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 75 dBA on the map's Overall layer. Blocks on the opposite side of North Alameda, 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 North Alameda
The bar chart below shows the share of North Alameda residents in each noise band. About 42% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 10% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How North Alameda Compares
North Alameda sits the highest among the peer group. Below: how North Alameda's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with Sloan Lake, Kendrick Lake, South Alameda, and Foothills.
Average noise level (dBA)
North Alameda's 55.1 dBA pop-weighted average is the highest among the peer group. Colorado as a whole averages 51.9 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than North Alameda because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 49.4% of North Alameda 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, 51.5% of North Alameda's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a Colorado average of 25.4% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to North Alameda
- 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 8% of North Alameda is under tree cover (lighter than most neighborhoods), 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. Denver International's approach paths concentrate aviation noise to the northeast. Neighborhoods to the southwest of downtown show no measurable contribution from the airport.
