Noise Levels in Olney, MD | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
51 dBA
Average noise across Olney
Quiet office
4,858
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
19% of Olney residents
76 dBA
Loudest residential point
City bus interior
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across Olney 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 4,858 Olney residents, or 18.8%, live above that level. By land area, 25.3% of Olney is above 55 dBA.
74.7% below 55 dBA
25.3% above 55 dBA
See how noise in Olney compares to similar-sized cities.
Noise by Part of Olney
Average noise levels for Olney residents, grouped by direction from the center of Olney. Southern Olney carries the highest population-weighted average; Western Olney carries the lowest. Just 12% of residents in Western Olney live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, about half the share in Southern Olney.
Central Olney
49.2 dBA · Mostly quiet
Quiet office
Eastern Olney
50.6 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office
Northern Olney
51.9 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office to normal conversation
Southern Olney
52.7 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office to normal conversation
Western Olney
49.1 dBA · Mostly quiet
Quiet office
Southern Olney sounds about 28% louder than Western Olney to the human ear, a 3.6 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.
How far back from State Hwy 200 do you need to be?
State Hwy 200 produces an estimated 75 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
75 dBA
City bus interior
165 ft
62 dBA
Busy restaurant
330 ft
55 dBA
Quiet office to normal conversation
660 ft
47 dBA
Quiet office
¼ mile
40 dBA
Soft rainfall
½ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 39% of Olney sits under tree canopy (about average for cities) and roughly 28% 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.
-->
Airport Noise
Ronald Reagan Washington Ntl (DCA) sits south of Olney. 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 Olney, 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 Olney
The bar chart below shows the share of Olney residents in each noise band. About 91% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 1% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How Olney Compares
Olney sits the lowest among the peer group. Below: how Olney's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with Scaggsville, Takoma Park, South Laurel, and Beltsville.
Average noise level (dBA)
Olney's 50.9 dBA pop-weighted average is the lowest among the peer group. Maryland as a whole averages 52.3 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than Olney because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 18.8% of Olney 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, 25.3% of Olney's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a Maryland average of 32.9% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to Olney
- 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 State Hwy 200 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 39% of Olney is under tree cover (about average for 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. Ronald Reagan Washington Ntl's approach paths concentrate aviation noise to the south. Neighborhoods to the north of downtown show no measurable contribution from the airport.
