Noise Levels in West of Twin Peaks, San Francisco, CA | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
53 dBA
Average noise across West of Twin Peaks
Quiet office to normal conversation
5,189
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
37% of West of Twin Peaks residents
77 dBA
Loudest residential point
City bus interior
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across West of Twin Peaks 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 5,189 West of Twin Peaks residents, or 36.9%, live above that level. By land area, 38.2% of West of Twin Peaks is above 55 dBA.
61.8% below 55 dBA
38.2% above 55 dBA
See how noise in West of Twin Peaks compares to similar-sized neighborhoods.
Noise by Part of West of Twin Peaks
Average noise levels for West of Twin Peaks residents, grouped by direction from the center of West of Twin Peaks. Southern West of Twin Peaks carries the highest population-weighted average; Central West of Twin Peaks carries the lowest. Just 27% of residents in Central West of Twin Peaks live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, about two-thirds of the share in Southern West of Twin Peaks.
Central West of Twin Peaks
52.0 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office to normal conversation
Eastern West of Twin Peaks
52.9 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office to normal conversation
Northern West of Twin Peaks
53.3 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Southern West of Twin Peaks
55.2 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Western West of Twin Peaks
53.4 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Southern West of Twin Peaks sounds about 25% louder than Central West of Twin Peaks to the human ear, a 3.2 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 do you need to be?
produces an estimated 77 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
77 dBA
City bus interior
165 ft
63 dBA
Busy restaurant
330 ft
56 dBA
Quiet office to normal conversation
660 ft
48 dBA
Quiet office
¼ mile
40 dBA
Soft rainfall
½ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 12% of West of Twin Peaks sits under tree canopy (about average for neighborhoods) and roughly 55% 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
San Francisco International (SFO) sits southeast of West of Twin Peaks. The U.S. Department of Transportation measures aviation noise around this airport directly, 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 75 dBA on the map's Overall layer. Blocks on the opposite side of West of Twin Peaks, particularly to the northwest, show no measurable aviation contribution. Use the Aviation toggle on the map above to isolate the airport's footprint.
How Noise Is Distributed Across West of Twin Peaks
The bar chart below shows the share of West of Twin Peaks residents in each noise band. About 72% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 4% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How West of Twin Peaks Compares
West of Twin Peaks sits the lowest among the peer group. Below: how West of Twin Peaks's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with Crocker Amazon, St Marys Park, Pacific Heights, and Haight-Ashbury.
Average noise level (dBA)
West of Twin Peaks's 53.4 dBA pop-weighted average is the lowest among the peer group. California as a whole averages 54.0 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than West of Twin Peaks because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 36.9% of West of Twin Peaks residents live in blocks where outdoor levels exceed the EPA's 55 dBA threshold. That's fewer than any of its peer group. Measured by land area instead, 38.2% of West of Twin Peaks'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 West of Twin Peaks
- 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 12% of West of Twin Peaks is under tree cover (about average for 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. San Francisco International's approach paths concentrate aviation noise to the southeast. Neighborhoods to the northwest of downtown show no measurable contribution from the airport.
