New York City Is Loud. It Doesn’t Have To Be This Way.

It's no secret: New York City is loud 🗣️

Nearly 40% of New Yorkers experience frequent noise pollution from traffic.

Reports to 311 for car honking complaints increased 2.8x between 2010 and 2016.

More driving leads to more noise pollution. We need to reduce driving.

Exposure to loud noise can cause:

• Hearing loss

• Cardiovascular problems

• Cognitive impairment

• Stress

• Depression

• Hypertension

• Diabetes

• Obesity

• Heart attacks

• Strokes

• Death

• Sleep disturbance

• Lowered children’s reading comprehension.

Black and Latino New Yorkers were more likely to report having their sleep frequently disturbed by noise than white New Yorkers, consistent with findings of racial/ethnic differences in exposure to noise pollution.

Vehicle traffic causes 80% of noise pollution in cities.

Spatial Equity NYC measures noise pollution from all transportation sources — airplanes included.

The three council districts with the highest levels of noise pollution are all in Queens.

So what can we do about this?

Well, simply put, we need to reduce the number of cars on the road.

Reducing vehicle miles traveled will lead to quieter streets.