Noise Levels in South City Farms, Sacramento, CA | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
57 dBA
Average noise across South City Farms
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
1,519
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
44% of South City Farms residents
78 dBA
Loudest residential point
City bus interior
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across South City Farms 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 1,519 South City Farms residents, or 43.7%, live above that level. By land area, 43.9% of South City Farms is above 55 dBA.
56.1% below 55 dBA
43.9% above 55 dBA
See how noise in South City Farms compares to similar-sized neighborhoods.
Noise by Part of South City Farms
Average noise levels for South City Farms residents, grouped by direction from the center of South City Farms. Central South City Farms carries the highest population-weighted average; Northern South City Farms carries the lowest. Just 31% of residents in Northern South City Farms live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, about half the share in Central South City Farms.
Central South City Farms
67.0 dBA · Loud
Highway traffic 50 ft away
Eastern South City Farms
61.0 dBA · Loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Northern South City Farms
54.2 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Southern South City Farms
54.2 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Western South City Farms
57.1 dBA · Moderate-loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Central South City Farms sounds about 143% louder than Northern South City Farms to the human ear, a 12.8 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 78 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 suburban street at night.
At source
78 dBA
City bus interior
165 ft
66 dBA
Busy restaurant
330 ft
59 dBA
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
660 ft
51 dBA
Quiet office to normal conversation
¼ mile
44 dBA
Quiet suburban street at night
½ mile
37 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 0% of South City Farms sits under tree canopy (much lighter than most neighborhoods) and roughly 42% 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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Rail Noise
Active freight rail runs through parts of South City Farms. 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.
Airport Noise
Sacramento International (SMF) sits northwest of South City Farms. 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 45 dBA on the map's Overall layer. Blocks on the opposite side of South City Farms, particularly to the southeast, show no measurable aviation contribution. Use the Aviation toggle on the map above to isolate the airport's footprint.
How Noise Is Distributed Across South City Farms
The bar chart below shows the share of South City Farms residents in each noise band. About 46% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 20% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How South City Farms Compares
South City Farms sits the highest among the peer group. Below: how South City Farms's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with North Oak Park, Glen Elder, Lawrence Park, and Tahoe Park.
Average noise level (dBA)
South City Farms's 56.9 dBA pop-weighted average is the highest among the peer group. California as a whole averages 54.0 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than South City Farms because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 43.7% of South City Farms 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, 43.9% of South City Farms's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a California average of 36.0% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to South City Farms
- 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 0% of South City Farms is under tree cover (much 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. Sacramento International's approach paths concentrate aviation noise to the northwest. Neighborhoods to the southeast of downtown show no measurable contribution from the airport.
