Noise Levels in Port Neches, TX | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
53 dBA
Average noise across Port Neches
Quiet office to normal conversation
2,430
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
27% of Port Neches residents
90 dBA
Loudest residential point
Lawnmower at 1 m
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across Port Neches 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 2,430 Port Neches residents, or 27.3%, live above that level. By land area, 25.1% of Port Neches is above 55 dBA.
74.9% below 55 dBA
25.1% above 55 dBA
See how noise in Port Neches compares to similar-sized cities.
Noise by Part of Port Neches
Average noise levels for Port Neches residents, grouped by direction from the center of Port Neches. The highest population-weighted average is in southwestern Port Neches; the lowest is in southeastern Port Neches, where just 18% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, about half the share in the loudest section.
Southwestern Port Neches
69.9 dBA · Loud
Highway traffic 50 ft away
Eastern Port Neches
59.5 dBA · Loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Northwestern Port Neches
55.2 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Central Port Neches
51.7 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office to normal conversation
Southeastern Port Neches
51.5 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office to normal conversation
To the human ear, noise in southwestern Port Neches sounds about 258% louder than in southeastern Port Neches, a 18.4 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 90 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 quiet office to normal conversation.
At source
90 dBA
Lawnmower at 1 m
165 ft
76 dBA
City bus interior
330 ft
68 dBA
Highway traffic 50 ft away
660 ft
60 dBA
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
¼ mile
51 dBA
Quiet office to normal conversation
½ mile
43 dBA
Quiet suburban street at night
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 16% of Port Neches sits under tree canopy (lighter than most cities) and roughly 38% 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 Port Neches. 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 Port Neches
The bar chart below shows the share of Port Neches residents in each noise band. About 68% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 7% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How Port Neches Compares
Port Neches sits the highest among the peer group. Below: how Port Neches's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with Bridge City, Nederland, Groves, and Vidor.
Average noise level (dBA)
Port Neches's 53.1 dBA pop-weighted average is the highest among the peer group. Texas as a whole averages 50.8 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than Port Neches because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 27.3% of Port Neches residents live in blocks where outdoor levels exceed the EPA's 55 dBA threshold. That's more than any of its peer group. Measured by land area instead, 25.1% of Port Neches's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a Texas average of 22.8% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to Port Neches
- 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 16% of Port Neches is under tree cover (lighter than most 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.
