Noise Levels in South Fairmount, Cincinnati, OH | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
54 dBA
Average noise across South Fairmount
Quiet office to normal conversation
1,355
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
33% of South Fairmount residents
70 dBA
Loudest residential point
Highway traffic 50 ft away
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across South Fairmount 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 1,355 South Fairmount residents, or 32.9%, live above that level. By land area, 66.6% of South Fairmount is above 55 dBA.
33.4% below 55 dBA
66.6% above 55 dBA
See how noise in South Fairmount compares to similar-sized neighborhoods.
Noise by Part of South Fairmount
Average noise levels for South Fairmount residents, grouped by direction from the center of South Fairmount. The highest population-weighted average is in eastern South Fairmount; the lowest is in southeastern South Fairmount, where just 18% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, a third of the share in the loudest section.
Eastern South Fairmount
57.8 dBA · Moderate-loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Central South Fairmount
57.6 dBA · Moderate-loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Western South Fairmount
57.5 dBA · Moderate-loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Northwestern South Fairmount
53.5 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Southeastern South Fairmount
51.6 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office to normal conversation
To the human ear, noise in eastern South Fairmount sounds about 54% louder than in southeastern South Fairmount, a 6.2 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 Queen City Ave do you need to be?
Queen City Ave produces an estimated 67 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
67 dBA
Highway traffic 50 ft away
165 ft
52 dBA
Quiet office to normal conversation
330 ft
43 dBA
Quiet suburban street at night
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 59% of South Fairmount sits under tree canopy (much heavier than most neighborhoods) and roughly 17% 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
Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International (CVG) sits southwest of South Fairmount. 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 65 dBA on the map's Overall layer. Blocks on the opposite side of South Fairmount, particularly to the northeast, 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 Fairmount
The bar chart below shows the share of South Fairmount residents in each noise band. About 64% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 21% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How South Fairmount Compares
South Fairmount sits at the quieter end of the spectrum. Below: how South Fairmount's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with East Westwood, Mount Auburn, Central Business District, and West End.
Average noise level (dBA)
South Fairmount's 53.5 dBA pop-weighted average is at the quieter end of the spectrum. Ohio as a whole averages 51.1 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than South Fairmount because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 32.9% of South Fairmount 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, 66.6% of South Fairmount's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a Ohio average of 26.4% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to South Fairmount
- 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 Queen City Ave 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 59% of South Fairmount is under tree cover (much heavier than most neighborhoods), and the dominant land cover is low-density developed open space. 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. Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International's approach paths concentrate aviation noise to the southwest. Neighborhoods to the northeast of downtown show no measurable contribution from the airport.
