US citiesLos AngelesUniversity Park

University Park noise map: how loud is it?

University Park is one of Los Angeles's louder neighborhoods: 16.6% of residents live with average-day transportation noise of 60 dB or more — road, rail and aviation combined — which ranks it the 12th-loudest of 110 Los Angeles neighborhoods. The map below shows how that noise concentrates along its busiest corridors.

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Transportation-noise map of University Park, Los Angeles: the neighborhood outlined in white over modeled road, rail and aircraft noise, colored from amber (about 45 dBA) through red and purple to blue (90 dBA and up).
University Park outlined over the modeled 24-hour transportation-noise level (LAeq, dBA) from the US DOT BTS 2020 National Transportation Noise Map. Boundary © LA Times; streets and water © OpenStreetMap contributors, © CARTO.
Interactive map Open University Park on the live noise map → Zoom to any block over the federal BTS raster, or use your location.
University Park noise exposure at a glance
Rank in Los Angeles (of 110 neighborhoods) #12
Residents above 60 dB 16.6%
Residents above 70 dB 5.5%
Residents in the 45–60 dB band 34.5%
Residents (ACS 2016–2020, area-weighted) 23,916
Census tracts mapped 16

University Park is home to about 23,916 residents across 16 census tracts. 16.6% of them are exposed to 60 dB or more of average-day road, rail and aviation noise. Within that, 5.5% face the most severe band — 70 dB or louder, the level at which sustained exposure starts to threaten hearing. A further 34.5% sit in the 45–60 dB band — a noticeable background hum rather than a hearing risk. That ranks University Park #12 of 110 Los Angeles neighborhoods, louder than most Los Angeles neighborhoods. Among Los Angeles neighborhoods it sits just below Palms (#11) and just above Lincoln Heights (#13).

The exposure is not spread evenly. The 5.5% in the 70 dB-plus band are the households packed right against a freeway, rail corridor or flight path, while blocks a few streets inland fall away fast. On the map that reads as a bright ribbon of noise tracing the corridor through University Park.

University Park noise: the specifics

  • Ranks #12 of 110 Los Angeles neighborhoods by share of residents exposed to ≥60 dB transportation noise.
  • 16.6% of University Park's ~23,916 residents live with 60 dB or louder average-day transportation noise.
  • 5.5% are in the severe 70 dB+ band; 34.5% sit in the 45–60 dB moderate range.
  • Area-weighted across 16 census tracts from the federal BTS 2020 noise map × ACS 2016–2020 population.
  • #12 of 110 — see the full Los Angeles ranking.

What share of University Park residents are exposed to 60 dB or louder transportation noise?

16.6% of University Park residents live with average-day transportation noise (road, rail and aviation) at or above 60 dB, and 5.5% are above 70 dB — ranking University Park #12 of 110 Los Angeles neighborhoods by noise exposure.

How University Park compares

How this is measured

This is a transparent aggregation of federal data, not an estimate: the US DOT 2020 National Transportation Noise Map (road + rail + aviation), paired with Census population by the University of Washington and area-weighted to the Los Angeles Times boundary for University Park. It does not count sirens, construction, nightlife or neighbors, and it resolves busy corridors better than quiet local streets. For your exact spot, measure it with the free online decibel meter →

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