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Traffic heat map of Hughes County, South Dakota: 125 miles of roads shaded from blue (light) to red (heavy traffic), busiest on Sioux Avenue and Garfield Avenue

Hughes County, South Dakota Traffic Counts

It ranks among the top 5 counties in South Dakota for average daily traffic. This page breaks down traffic in Hughes County, South Dakota across 125 miles of monitored roads split into 1,106 segments, using multi-sourced mobile and sensor data. It goes beyond raw counts to truck flow, congestion and who is driving, so site selection and route planning rest on evidence.
Data sourced from TrafficZoom's proprietary analytics platform.
Data current as of:
Q3 2026
Updated:
September 29, 2026
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total traffic icon

Total Traffic Volume & Performance in Hughes County, South Dakota

Traffic

The average number of vehicles that travel each day over any road in the road network.

vehicles per day5,103
Trucks

The percentage of the total traffic volume composed of heavy vehicles.

7.7%
Average travel time

The average time of travel averaged among all vehicles traveling on the road network.

31.3 min
Drivers’ average age

Average age of residents in the geographic areas where the vehicle trips originated.

48.7 yrs
Drivers’ average income

Average income of residents in the geographic areas where the vehicle trips originated.

$82,078

The average monitored road in Hughes County, South Dakota carries 5,103 vehicles per day. Across its 125 miles of monitored roads, that adds up to 301,162 vehicle-miles traveled per day (≈110 million per year). About 1 in 13 vehicles is a truck, fewer than the 1 in 10 across South Dakota.

Busier roads than 94% of counties in South Dakota

Hughes's average daily traffic volume is 62% higher than the state average - 5,103 vehicles per day against 3,156 - suggesting more traffic load per road - prime passing trade for storefronts, with more competition for road space. Network-wide, Hughes accounts for about 1.2% of South Dakota's statewide total of vehicle-miles. 94% of counties in South Dakota see less traffic than Hughes's 5,103 vehicles per day.

At 31.3 minutes, the average travel time matches the state level closely. On travel time, Hughes runs shorter than 85% of counties in South Dakota.

Highway vs. Non-Highway Traffic Analysis

highway traffic icon

Highway Traffic in Hughes County, South Dakota

Trafficvehicles per day5,983
Trucks10.6%
Average travel time32.8 min
Drivers’ average age48.9 yrs
Drivers’ average income$82,084

Highways carry a significant share of travel in Hughes County, South Dakota: 43% of all vehicle-miles. The average highway carries 5,983 vehicles per day, 24% more than the average non-highway road in the same area, which carries 4,824 vehicles per day.

Highways also make up about 38% of the monitored road miles: 47 miles in 266 segments, together carrying 130,860 vehicle-miles traveled per day (≈47.8 million per year).

Lower highway truck share than 90% of counties in South Dakota

Highway truck concentration here runs 22% lower than the state average, at 10.6%. Highways here mostly serve passenger trips, so local access matters more than long-haul routing for logistics operators.

90% of counties in South Dakota see a higher highway truck share than Hughes's 10.6%. 56% of counties in South Dakota see more highway trucks per day than Hughes's roughly 635.

non-highway traffic icon

Non-highway Traffic in Hughes County, South Dakota

Trafficvehicles per day4,824
Trucks5.4%
Average travel time30.8 min
Drivers’ average age48.6 yrs
Drivers’ average income$82,075

A little more than half of the driving in Hughes County, South Dakota happens on local roads: 57% of all vehicle-miles. A typical local road sees 4,824 vehicles per day.

Local roads also make up about 62% of the monitored road miles: 78 miles in 840 segments, together carrying 170,302 vehicle-miles traveled per day (≈62.2 million per year). The truck share on non-highway roads is 5.4%.

Drivers from higher-income areas than 94% of counties in South Dakota

Compared to highways, non-highway routes see 49% fewer trucks by share.

Trip origins here have higher average income than 94% of counties in South Dakota. The driver population here skews younger than 60% of counties in South Dakota.

Time-of-Day & Seasonal Patterns

peak hours icon
Peak Traffic Windows
Weekday peaks:
AM peak 7:00 AM–8:00 AM and PM peak 12:00 PM–1:00 PM, with volumes reaching approximately 82% higher than the daily average.
Weekend traffic:
Weekends are somewhat quieter: volumes run about 17% below weekday levels, the usual weekend dip.
seasonal traffic icon
Seasonal Fluctuation
Busy season:
June–August is the high season, with volumes +15% versus the annual average.
Lowest month:
March is the quietest month, with volumes -20% versus the annual average.

Data Finding: Hourly & Seasonal Patterns

In Hughes County, South Dakota, the peak hour concentrates about 8% of the day's traffic, and there is a strong seasonal swing of +15% in high season.

Hughes County vs. South Dakota Traffic Comparison

Of the four measures, average daily traffic per road differs most: Hughes County runs 62% above the South Dakota average. Its truck share, by contrast, is 26% below.

MetricHughes CountySouth Dakota averageDifference
Traffic5,1033,156+61.7%
Truck % (Total Traffic)7.7%10.3%-25.6%
Truck % (Highway)10.6%13.6%-21.9%
Avg. Travel Time31.3 min32.5 min-3.6%

How Hughes County compares

Hughes County has the busiest roads among its nearby counties

Compared with its 4 closest neighbours, Hughes County carries 514.5% more traffic on a typical road and runs 6.4 percentage points less truck traffic; it has the busiest roads of the five. The extra traffic here is local and light - trucks make up less of it than anywhere immediately around it.

Hughes County and the 4 nearest county-level areas by centroid distance, with the South Dakota average for scale.
AreaAverage daily trafficTruck shareDaily vehicle-milesAverage travel timeCongestion ratio
Hughes County5,1037.7%301,16231.3 minN/A
Hyde County, South Dakota96111.3%62,58935.6 minN/A
Sully County, South Dakota69713.4%50,79135.8 minN/A
Lyman County, South Dakota1,36218.2%571,25337.0 minN/A
Buffalo County, South Dakota30213.3%22,79042.0 minN/A
South Dakota average3,15610.3%N/A32.5 min12.9%

Hughes County ranked within South Dakota

Average daily traffic volume places Hughes County #5 of 66 in South Dakota - the top quarter of the state.

Hughes County ranked among 66 county-level areas in South Dakota (1 = highest); measures without data in every county rank a smaller field, down to 49.
MeasureHughes CountySouth Dakota rank
Traffic volume (AADT)5,103#5 of 66
Highway vehicle-miles per day130,860#28 of 49
Truck share on highways10.6%#44 of 49
Highway trucks per day635#28 of 49
Average travel time31.3 min#56 of 66
Average driver income$82,078#5 of 66
Average driver age48.7 yrs#40 of 66

The two ends of this table sit far apart: #5 of 66 on average daily traffic volume, against #44 of 49 on truck share on highways.

Busiest roads in Hughes County, South Dakota

On their busiest stretches, the three busiest roads in Hughes County carry 14,374 vehicles a day on average, 2.8 times the typical road in the county (5,103).

Sioux Avenue is the busiest road, at 18,946 vehicles a day, 1,516 of them trucks (8.0%). No other road comes close: Garfield Avenue, in second place, carries 12,622. It also carries the most trucks.

Ranked by daily traffic (AADT)

Cars and light vehiclesTrucks
1Sioux AvenueTrunk road · 18,946vehicles1,516trucks · 8.0%
Road class
Trunk road
Median trip time
33.7 min
Drivers’ median age
49.0 yrs
Drivers’ average income
$82,791

Sioux Avenue carries 3.7 times the county average at its busiest, 1,516 of them trucks (8.0%, in line with the county-wide 7.7%).

2Garfield AvenuePrimary road · 12,622vehicles721trucks · 5.7%
Road class
Primary road
Median trip time
31.9 min
Drivers’ median age
48.9 yrs
Drivers’ average income
$81,921

Garfield Avenue carries 2.5 times the county average on its busiest stretch, where the median trip lasts 31.9 minutes.

3Wells AvenuePrimary road · 11,554vehicles591trucks · 5.1%
Road class
Primary road
Median trip time
33.6 min
Drivers’ median age
49.1 yrs
Drivers’ average income
$79,627

At 2.3 times the county average, Wells Avenue draws drivers from neighborhoods averaging $79,627 in household income.

4Euclid AvenueTrunk road · 9,397vehicles741trucks · 7.9%
Road class
Trunk road
Median trip time
25.9 min
Drivers’ median age
49.1 yrs
Drivers’ average income
$81,213

At 84% more than the county average, Euclid Avenue draws drivers from neighborhoods averaging $81,213 in household income.

5Harrison AvenueTertiary road · 7,675vehicles228trucks · 3.0%
Road class
Tertiary road
Median trip time
25.9 min
Drivers’ median age
48.6 yrs
Drivers’ average income
$81,471

Harrison Avenue is busy by local standards, at 50% more than the county average on its busiest stretch; trucks are 3.0% of it, below the county-wide 7.7%.

Ranked by trucks per day

Cars and light vehiclesTrucks
1Sioux AvenueTrunk road · #1 by traffic18,946vehicles1,516trucks · 8.0%
2Euclid AvenueTrunk road · #4 by traffic9,397vehicles741trucks · 7.9%
3Garfield AvenuePrimary road · #2 by traffic12,622vehicles721trucks · 5.7%
4Wells AvenuePrimary road · #3 by traffic11,554vehicles591trucks · 5.1%
5US 14Trunk road · 3,593vehicles384trucks · 10.7%
Road class
Trunk road
Median trip time
31.9 min
Drivers’ median age
48.3 yrs
Drivers’ average income
$81,672

Even at its busiest, US 14 carries 30% less than the county average; trucks are 10.7% of it, above the county-wide 7.7%.

How to read these road counts
  • The first number is AADT, annual average daily traffic: the vehicles passing a point on an average day, both directions combined and trucks included. On a divided highway both carriageways are added together.
  • Traffic changes along a road, with more near interchanges and towns and less in open country. Every figure for a road describes its busiest stretch in the county, so the two rankings show the same numbers for the same road.
  • The second number is the trucks on that stretch, a part of its AADT. The bar splits the AADT into cars and light vehicles (blue) and trucks (amber).
  • See segment-level AADT for any road on TrafficZoom.

Data Sources & Methodology

The data presented on this page is derived from TrafficZoom's proprietary analytics platform, which aggregates and normalizes information from multiple sources, including:

Mobile device location data (anonymized and aggregated)

Road sensor networks and traffic counters

Historical traffic pattern databases

Public traffic count programs published by the

HughesDepartment of Transportation

Demographic Baseline for O-D Modeling

U.S. Census Bureau
All metrics represent estimates based on statistical modeling and are intended for strategic planning purposes.
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Data current as of:
Q3 2026

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Counties near Hughes County

The same traffic breakdown for the areas closest to Hughes County, South Dakota.

Need segment-level traffic data?

Identify traffic patterns street by street and analyze the exact corridors that matter to your project.