Transit Soundscape explores how chronic noise exposure in the New York City subway contributes to stress, fatigue, and reduced emotional regulation, yet remains largely invisible and untreated as a public health issue. Current solutions focus either on individual coping mechanisms, like headphones, or large-scale infrastructure fixes, leaving a gap in accessible, shared approaches to care.

This project reframes sound as a form of preventive care and investigates how transit environments can support well-being rather than undermine it. Through workshops, expert interviews, and embodied research, we found that commuters already engage in informal care practices, but these are individualized and unequal. In response, we designed a system that combines public education, spatial interventions, and optional wearable integration.

The proposal includes noise awareness exhibits, “calm zones” within stations, and a wearable-connected app that helps users understand and respond to their sensory environment. Together, these elements aim to make invisible stress visible, restore a sense of agency, and embed care into everyday commuting. By shifting from control to awareness and choice, the project positions transit as an opportunity to design for collective, preventive care."