Come on, feel the noise!
Fed-up Big Apple residents can now help monitor and police excessive ear-piercing noise in their neighborhoods through a new “NYC Noise” app launched by the city Department of Environmental Protection.
The free app, available to download Monday morning, allows users to record decibel levels and classify noise types that will provide valuable data to DEP, the agency that enforces annoying and unhealthy sound levels — by far the number one gripe New Yorkers have called out in the 311 system.
Locals in need of some quiet can use the app to document the time, date, location, and source of a bothersome noise by taking a simple five-second reading.
Noise types can be classified as alarms, construction work, dog/animal noise, HVAC/fan noise, loud music, sirens, traffic (cars, buses), or horns.
As more users record noise data, the DEP will eventually compile the information into a citywide noise map — allowing the agency to identify hotspots, trends by time of day, day of the week, season, and the types of noise most common in certain neighborhoods.
Results from the “NYC Noise” meter app will appear in both map and table formats, showing average and maximum decibel levels along with user notes on noise type — such as construction, traffic, or music.
“Noise is one of the most common quality-of-life issues New Yorkers face, and this new tool will help us better understand when and where those disturbances occur,” said DEP Commissioner Rohit Aggarwala.
The new data will be used in conjunction with that collected from the agency’s network of “noise cameras” secretly monitoring for loud motorcycles, honking cars and music-blasting vehicles. The “cameras” have doled out more than $1.7 million in fines in the past few years, The Post previously reported.
The city received more than 700,000 311 noise complaints of all kinds last year, the most of any category of nuisance reported in the Big Apple.
The DEP said it received more than 20,000 complaints just for “after-hours” construction noise alone in 2023, such as jack-hammering.
But traditional complaints via the 311 system often lack precise data on decibel levels and timing, making enforcement more difficult, DEP officials said.
Citizens can now do now their own decibel readings.
However, the data entered by users will not be used for specific enforcement actions, and the audio of the noise itself will not be recorded, just the decibel level.
Still, the data-driven approach will help DEP deploy inspectors more efficiently and focus enforcement efforts where and when they are needed most.
The noise metrics captured by the app will fill key data gaps — showing how loud the noise is, when it occurs, and what type it is.
For example, if user inputs show that jackhammering typically occurs at a certain location between 8 and 10 a.m., DEP can schedule inspections during that window.
Some of the worst ear-piercing noise comes from construction sites. Jackhammers and power saws generate 110 decibels of noise, just below a jet takeoff at 130 decibels.
Stereo boomboxes also crash weary ears with 110-120 decibels.
The city noise code bars noise above 42 decibels into neighboring homes, including from music venues.
DEP officials expect the easily downloadable NYC Noise app will be a hit with citizens following a series of internal tests..
“It’s very user-friendly,” a DEP insider said.
“I want to thank our teams in the bureaus of Environmental Compliance and Business Information Technology for their work in developing NYC Noise, which will help our inspectors target enforcement more precisely while empowering the public to participate in creating a quieter city,” Commissioner Aggarwala said.
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