NEW YORK CITY (PIX11) – New York City is the country’s noisiest city – and Jersey City is not far behind, according to a new study from Steel Guard Safety.
Nowhere is noise pollution worse than New York City, a city with 524.7 construction permits issued per 100,000 people and an average of 78.1 bars and clubs per square mile, the industrial noise control manufacturer found.
The ranking considered a number of noise pollution factors, including traffic and population density, public transit, construction projects per capita, nightlife and public parks.
Jersey City also landed in Steel Guard’s top three, trailing closely behind Chicago, which sees more flights per day and more construction projects.
Jersey City, though, has more public transit vehicles per square mile than New York City by a landslide, according to Steel Guard.
“There’s no way around it – Jersey City is often one big traffic jam,” Steel Guard said of the city with an average one-way commute of nearly 38 minutes.
Newark, New Jersey landed in the No. 4 spot just behind Jersey City, with a similar amount of construction but lower population density and less bars and clubs, the study found.
Newark, on average, sees nearly 1,000 commercial flights per day thanks to Newark Liberty.
Emily Rahhal is a digital reporter from Los Angeles who has covered local news for years. She has been with PIX11 since 2024. See more of her work here and follow her on Twitter.