The Deafening Noise Pollution of Washington Heights

From the bedroom window this morning, at not quite 7 a.m., I hear the construction crews setting up. I hear the first of dozens of helicopters that will cross the Hudson River to tour the Met Cloisters. I hear the parade of trucks coming off the George Washington Bridge, squealing up the steep hill I live at the bottom of.

This is just a tiny sample of noise in Washington Heights. Residents here live on a patch of land that measures less than a mile wide. Yet we are home to the busiest bridge in the WORLD. We are framed by two of New York City’s busiest arterial highways: the FDR and the Henry Hudson Expressways. There is a 12-lane highway slicing down the heart of Washington Heights known as the Trans Manhattan Expressway. Yes, you read that correctly: TWELVE lanes. And, this doesn’t cover the onslaught of commercial and residential delivery services, a dozen or more MTA bus lines, the GWB Bus Terminal servicing nationwide routes, thousands of Ubers servicing one of the nation’s busiest hospital networks, flight paths for three area airports, and a residential density rate of approximately 100,000 persons per square mile.

Washington Heights provides a unique case study on noise pollution. Even as studies by renowned cardiologists, mental health doctors, and child development experts have linked noise pollution to heart attacks, depression, and delayed learning, residents here are exposed to dangerously high levels of noise pollution. Underscoring these hazards is the prevalence by which noise pollution is found in low-income, immigrant communities versus wealthier white communities. Washington Heights offers that scope with its famously dividing line at Broadway—a divide famously documented by Rutgers Professor Robert W. Snyder in his book on Washington Heights, Crossing Broadway.

As a graduate student, I am studying public administrative puzzles like this one. How to balance trade-offs between quality of life and progress. Washington Heights is a community where 74% of its population is of Hispanic background, and 22% of its residents live at or below the poverty rate. These numbers don’t just represent populations, but rather families that all too often are found at the polestar of noise pollution. Families near the Trans Manhattan Expressway, for instance, endure noise levels between 85 dB(A) and 95 dB(A) daily—just about all day. Damage to ears begins at 65 dB (A). Children are particularly at risk for losing not just hearing but development milestones and years of learning due to noise pollution.

Wealthier residents share in the distribution of noise pollution as well. The helicopter touring company HeliNY takes passengers on tours to view the GWB and the Palisades from New York and New Jersey. Per-person pricing ranges from $250 to $2,200 for a view of our spectacular scenery. This, of course, comes at a higher price for those of us who endure the choppers that set out every day beginning at 8 a.m. and go well into the evening hours. Living in Washington Heights also means you hear planes mainly headed to or from LaGuardia, with other airports using air space and private charters.

Though noise pollution does an excellent job of not discriminating among the residents of Washington Heights, differences of up to 40 dB(A) have been recorded between lower and higher-income census tracks. Washington Heights is a hub for drag racing, heavily modified muscle cars, fireworks, street vendors, and music, in addition to the existing powerful industries that create a unique noise pollution brand. The average New Yorker's recourse is to contact 311 and hope the noise goes away.

New York City has a long-standing noise code (Summary Available Here). Enforcing this code is a complex process. The Department of Environmental Protection(DEP) and NYPD are the two principal enforcers of the code, though several more agencies are authorized to respond. This is partly because 311 has amassed a running list of 22 varieties of noise. Transportation noise will soon face automated enforcement in the form of noise cameras. A reasonably quiet pilot program led by the DEP deployed a few cameras back in 2021. Though the pilot was completed in 2022, cameras have not yet been distributed citywide. It remains unclear when Washington Heights residents will see them along local streets. Those waiting can be residents, such as those needing to be in school buildings all day, hospitals, houses of worship, working from home, pedestrians, shoppers, visitors to Fort Tryon Park, and the perennial dog walker. For now, the Big Apple will rely on the sole tool of calling 311 to combat the second most dangerous environmental hazard behind air pollution, according to this Harvard study.

Washington Heights can build another tool. Or else, noise will continue to win. Participate in a survey in English or Spanish. Data collected by CUNY's Marxe School of Public Affairs will help develop a report identifying which areas and sounds most egregiously contribute to noise pollution. Noise pollution is affecting hundreds of thousands of residents of Washington Heights. Uniting voices will help move the needle toward action, such as working toward getting noise cameras, providing bilingual noise education for children and adults, and seeking help from the medical community, such as hearing and heart screenings for those most affected by noise pollution.

Washington Heights has a long history of overcoming extremely tough challenges. This makes it ideally positioned to deliver unique solutions. Solutions that appear to have gone missing when fighting noise pollution in New York City.

Full survey results will be posted for the community in a follow-up article.