Noise Levels in Page County, VA | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
47 dBA
Average noise across Page County
Quiet office
2,447
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
11% of Page County residents
99 dBA
Loudest residential point
Power saw
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across Page County 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 2,447 Page County residents, or 11.0%, live above that level. By land area, 17.6% of Page County is above 55 dBA.
82.4% below 55 dBA
17.6% above 55 dBA
See how noise in Page County compares to similar-sized counties.
Noise by Part of Page County
Average noise levels for Page County residents, grouped by direction from the center of Page County. The highest population-weighted average is in the Stanley area (southern Page County); the lowest is in eastern Page County, where just 3% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, about two-thirds of the share in the loudest section.
Stanley
55.3 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Shenandoah
52.3 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office to normal conversation
Luray
50.0 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office
Western Page County
46.9 dBA · Mostly quiet
Quiet office
Eastern Page County
45.0 dBA · Mostly quiet
Quiet suburban street at night
To the human ear, noise in the Stanley area (southern Page County) sounds about 104% louder than in eastern Page County, a 10.3 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 375-PITT Springs do you need to be?
375-PITT Springs produces an estimated 57 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
57 dBA
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
165 ft
45 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 31% of Page County sits under tree canopy (about average for counties) and roughly 10% 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.
-->
Rail Noise
Active freight rail runs through parts of Page County. 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.
How Noise Is Distributed Across Page County
The bar chart below shows the share of Page County residents in each noise band. About 89% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 3% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How Page County Compares
Page County sits at the quieter end of the spectrum. Below: how Page County's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with Greene County, Madison County, Shenandoah County, and Warren County.
Average noise level (dBA)
Page County's 47.0 dBA pop-weighted average is at the quieter end of the spectrum. Virginia as a whole averages 52.8 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than Page County because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 11.0% of Page County 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, 17.6% of Page County's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a Virginia average of 30.0% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to Page County
- 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 375-PITT Springs 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 31% of Page County is under tree cover (about average for counties), and the dominant land cover is pasture / hay. 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.
