Noise Levels in Upper Hill, Springfield, MA | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
55 dBA
Average noise across Upper Hill
Quiet office to normal conversation
3,081
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
54% of Upper Hill residents
68 dBA
Loudest residential point
Highway traffic 50 ft away
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across Upper Hill 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 3,081 Upper Hill residents, or 54.3%, live above that level. By land area, 49.0% of Upper Hill is above 55 dBA.
51.0% below 55 dBA
49.0% above 55 dBA
See how noise in Upper Hill compares to similar-sized neighborhoods.
Noise by Part of Upper Hill
Average noise levels for Upper Hill residents, grouped by direction from the center of Upper Hill. The highest population-weighted average is in eastern Upper Hill; the lowest is in southern Upper Hill, where just 24% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, about two-thirds of the share in the loudest section.
Eastern Upper Hill
56.4 dBA · Moderate-loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Northwestern Upper Hill
56.3 dBA · Moderate-loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Central Upper Hill
55.3 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Southern Upper Hill
52.3 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office to normal conversation
To the human ear, noise in eastern Upper Hill sounds about 33% louder than in southern Upper Hill, a 4.1 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 68 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
68 dBA
Highway traffic 50 ft away
165 ft
53 dBA
Quiet office to normal conversation
330 ft
45 dBA
Quiet suburban street at night
660 ft
37 dBA
Soft rainfall
¼ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
½ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 27% of Upper Hill sits under tree canopy (heavier than most neighborhoods) and roughly 51% 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
Bradley International (BDL) sits southwest of Upper Hill. 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 Upper Hill, 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 Upper Hill
The bar chart below shows the share of Upper Hill residents in each noise band. About 44% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 2% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How Upper Hill Compares
Upper Hill sits the lowest among the peer group. Below: how Upper Hill's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with McKnight, East Springfield, Old Hill, and Metro Center.
Average noise level (dBA)
Upper Hill's 55.1 dBA pop-weighted average is the lowest among the peer group. Massachusetts as a whole averages 54.3 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than Upper Hill because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 54.3% of Upper Hill 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, 49.0% of Upper Hill's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a Massachusetts average of 40.0% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to Upper Hill
- 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 27% of Upper Hill is under tree cover (heavier than most neighborhoods), and the dominant land cover is medium-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. Bradley International's approach paths concentrate aviation noise to the southwest. Neighborhoods to the northeast of downtown show no measurable contribution from the airport.
