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The Sound of Silence: A Noise Map of the U.S.

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Re: The Sound of Silence: A Noise Map of the U.S.

#21

Post by twiddling »

tothrowaway wrote: post #15
scioxo wrote: post #7

It pains me that noise pollution isn't taken as seriously as other forms of environmental damage when it's the one that most directly impacts (urban) people's quality of life.

The cars, trucks and motorcycles with booming exhaust pipes are insufferable. I despise hearing them revving by. I feel like I'm crazy for how much it bothers me. But then I read a story about a man shooting a driver who was just revving up and down his street, so I'm not alone. I spent a week in Helsinki, and was blown away by how quiet it was despite being far more dense than my city.

"Loud pipes save lives"

ugh

Re: The Sound of Silence: A Noise Map of the U.S.

#22

Post by cheschire »

mmahemoff wrote: post #12

I'd love a "sound overlay" for regular maps such as GMaps. If people knew typical noise levels across the day and across the year, it would change everything about travel bookings and real estate searches. For something that has such a huge impact on wellbeing, it's incredible how little attention it gets, from governments to individuals.

This is pretty close to what you're looking for, assuming you're in the US.

https://maps.dot.gov/BTS/NationalTransportationNoiseMap/

Also for those interested in the data side: https://data-usdot.opendata.arcgis.com/

Re: The Sound of Silence: A Noise Map of the U.S.

#23

Post by w-ll »

cheschire wrote: post #22
mmahemoff wrote: post #12

I'd love a "sound overlay" for regular maps such as GMaps. If people knew typical noise levels across the day and across the year, it would change everything about travel bookings and real estate searches. For something that has such a huge impact on wellbeing, it's incredible how little attention it gets, from governments to individuals.

This is pretty close to what you're looking for, assuming you're in the US. https://maps.dot.gov/BTS/NationalTransportationNoiseMap/ Also for those interested in the data side: https://data-usdot.opendata.arcgis.com/

I find it interesting but not surprising how you can pretty much plot air ports and the in/out routes from this heat map.

Also interesting things like Whiteman AFB, from the recent stealth bomber post, shows nothing.

Re: The Sound of Silence: A Noise Map of the U.S.

#24

Post by lotsofpulp »

twiddling wrote: post #21
tothrowaway wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The cars, trucks and motorcycles with booming exhaust pipes are insufferable. I despise hearing them revving by. I feel like I'm crazy for how much it bothers me. But then I read a story about a man shooting a driver who was just revving up and down his street, so I'm not alone. I spent a week in Helsinki, and was blown away by how quiet it was despite being far more dense than my city.

"Loud pipes save lives" ugh

If I was a cop, I would make it my sole mission to ticket each and every one all day long.

Re: The Sound of Silence: A Noise Map of the U.S.

#26

Post by seattle_spring »

scioxo wrote: post #7

It pains me that noise pollution isn't taken as seriously as other forms of environmental damage when it's the one that most directly impacts (urban) people's quality of life.

The average person just doesn't seem to care. I've observed first hand people feeling unbelievably entitled to force their noise onto others. This includes blasting music on portable speakers while in remote wilderness areas, stomping around in boots while living in a multi-floor apartment, and modified exhaust and emission systems, just to name a few. It's reflective of a pretty sad state of affairs in our culture, the selfish state of which has surfaced in many other ways lately. It frequently gives me Dr. Farnsworth moments [1].

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0j1xzezy8k4

Re: The Sound of Silence: A Noise Map of the U.S.

#27

Post by lettergram »

I think it’s important to differentiate (as this website does) the human made noise from the natural.

I love being in the woods / fields / lakes. Fishing, hunting, hiking, etc. when you’re out there for a while you realize how much noise there really is. I wish everyone could / would take a few days a month and just spend it in the the natural world.

I feel revived after spending a day or two listening to the leaves blowing. As some have pointed out here, going back to civilization is hard. The noise doesn’t necessarily bother me on a conscious level, but it eats my focus and drains me throughout the day. Almost creating a tension, just from the constant sounds and being alert.

Re: The Sound of Silence: A Noise Map of the U.S.

#28

Post by MerelyMortal »

lotsofpulp wrote: post #24
twiddling wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Loud pipes save lives" ugh

If I was a cop, I would make it my sole mission to ticket each and every one all day long.

It would be especially sweet if it was a motorcycle cop writing those tickets. Though if I were a cop, I wouldn't want to be a motorcycle cop because they have a higher fatality rate.

As a motorcyclist, I'm firmly in the camp about quiet, stock pipes.

If I was dictator, I would impound and destroy any vehicle that was too loud.

Re: The Sound of Silence: A Noise Map of the U.S.

#30

Post by Anechoic »

w-ll wrote: post #23
cheschire wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is pretty close to what you're looking for, assuming you're in the US. https://maps.dot.gov/BTS/NationalTransportationNoiseMap/ Also for those interested in the data side: https://data-usdot.opendata.arcgis.com/

I find it interesting but not surprising how you can pretty much plot air ports and the in/out routes from this heat map. Also interesting things like Whiteman AFB, from the recent stealth bomber post, shows nothing.

Also interesting things like Whiteman AFB, from the recent stealth bomber post, shows nothing

Those maps are generated by publicly available data (traffic, railway schedules, etc). In the case of airports/airbases, the data are generated with radar flight tracks. Military flight track data are often redacted (presumably because they can leak aircraft performance data) so it's not surprising that modeled noise from stealth aircraft was not calculated.

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