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Traffic heat map of Kauai County, Hawaii: 180 miles of roads shaded from blue (light) to red (heavy traffic), busiest on Kapule Highway and Ahukini Road

Kauai County, Hawaii Traffic Counts

How busy are the roads of Kauai County, Hawaii? We measure 180 road miles, divided into 2,412 segments, with multi-sourced, cross-verified mobile and sensor data. Its busiest road, Kapule Highway, carries 18,030 vehicles a day, 2.2 times the average road. The breakdown below covers volume, trucks, congestion and driver profiles for retailers, logistics planners and engineers.
Data sourced from TrafficZoom's proprietary analytics platform.
Data current as of:
Q3 2026
Updated:
September 29, 2026
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Total Traffic Volume & Performance in Kauai County, Hawaii

Traffic

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

vehicles per day8,197
Trucks

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

5.0%
Average travel time

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

36.4 min
Congestion ratio

The rate at which the actual travel time exceeds free-flow travel time, averaged among all roads in the network.

31.9%
Drivers’ average age

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

50.4 yrs
Drivers’ average income

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

$104,519

The average monitored road in Kauai County, Hawaii carries 8,197 vehicles per day. Across its 180 miles of monitored roads, that adds up to 1,334,099 vehicle-miles traveled per day (≈487 million per year). About 1 in 20 vehicles is a truck, in line with Hawaii (5.4%).

Quieter roads than 67% of counties in Hawaii

Kauai's average daily traffic volume is 21% lower than the state average - 8,197 vehicles per day against 10,441 - suggesting less traffic load per road - a critical factor for logistics and site planning. Network-wide, Kauai accounts for about 6.0% of Hawaii's statewide total of vehicle-miles. Kauai carries less traffic than 67% of counties in Hawaii.

The average trip takes 36.4 minutes, on par with the state level. On travel time, Kauai runs shorter than 67% of counties in Hawaii.

Congestion is somewhat higher than the state level, at a ratio of 31.9% (8% higher).

Time-of-Day & Seasonal Patterns

peak hours icon
Peak Traffic Windows
Weekday peaks:
AM peak 7:00 AM–8:00 AM and PM peak 3:00 PM–6:00 PM, with volumes reaching approximately 119% higher than the daily average.
Weekend traffic:
Weekends are somewhat quieter: volumes run about 19% below weekday levels, the usual weekend dip.
seasonal traffic icon
Seasonal Fluctuation
Busy season:
Traffic is nearly flat through the year: even August–October, the busiest stretch, runs only +3% versus the annual average.
Lowest month:
November is the quietest month, with volumes -3% versus the annual average.

Data Finding: Hourly & Seasonal Patterns

In Kauai County, Hawaii, traffic has a sharp commute peak, with the busiest hour carrying about 9% of the day's traffic, and traffic stays steady through the year (+3% in high season).

Kauai County vs. Hawaii Traffic Comparison

Of the four measures, average daily traffic per road differs most: Kauai County runs 21% below the Hawaii average.

MetricKauai CountyHawaii averageDifference
Traffic8,19710,441-21.5%
Truck % (Total Traffic)5.0%5.4%-6.9%
Avg. Travel Time36.4 min36.4 min+0.1%

How Kauai County compares

Kauai County moves the least traffic of its nearby counties

Against the 4 nearest areas, Kauai County moves 23.0% of the total daily travel; it has the third busiest roads of the five. The same kind of road, just less of it: traffic per road matches the areas around it while the network itself is smaller.

Kauai County and the 4 nearest county-level areas by centroid distance, with the Hawaii average for scale.
AreaAverage daily trafficTruck shareDaily vehicle-milesAverage travel timeCongestion ratio
Kauai County8,1975.0%1,334,09936.4 min31.9%
Honolulu County, Hawaii12,1485.0%13,442,04136.1 min32.3%
Maui County, Hawaii9,0665.0%2,664,05937.8 min31.1%
Hawaii County, Hawaii7,3926.8%4,687,20836.4 min22.1%
Mendocino County, California7,3048.3%2,422,66232.1 min15.7%
Hawaii average10,4415.4%N/A36.4 min29.5%

Kauai County ranked within Hawaii

Kauai County sits close to the Hawaii median on every measure below - no single figure sets it apart from the state as a whole.

Kauai County ranked among 4 county-level areas in Hawaii (1 = highest).
MeasureKauai CountyHawaii rank
Traffic volume (AADT)8,197#3 of 4
Average travel time36.4 min#3 of 4
Average driver income$104,519#2 of 4
Average driver age50.4 yrs#2 of 4

Busiest roads in Kauai County, Hawaii

The three busiest roads in Kauai County average 16,494 vehicles a day, 2.0 times the county average of 8,197 across all its monitored roads.

Kapule Highway is the busiest road, at 18,030 vehicles a day, 709 of them trucks (3.9%). Kaumualiʻi Highway carries the most trucks, 856 a day (5.5% of its traffic), although it ranks #3 for all traffic.

Ranked by daily traffic (AADT)

Cars and light vehiclesTrucks
1Kapule HighwaySecondary road · 18,030vehicles709trucks · 3.9%
Road class
Secondary road
Congestion ratio
43.1%
Median trip time
37.1 min
Drivers’ median age
50.4 yrs
Drivers’ average income
$103,828

The busiest stretch of Kapule Highway carries 2.2 times the county average; trucks are 3.9% of it, below the county-wide 5.0%.

2Ahukini RoadSecondary road · 15,884vehicles561trucks · 3.5%
Road class
Secondary road
Congestion ratio
36.8%
Median trip time
35.2 min
Drivers’ median age
50.5 yrs
Drivers’ average income
$107,399

Ahukini Road is busy by local standards, at 94% more than the county average on its busiest stretch; trucks are 3.5% of it, below the county-wide 5.0%.

3Kaumualiʻi HighwayPrimary road · 15,569vehicles856trucks · 5.5%
Road class
Primary road
Congestion ratio
103.5%
Median trip time
35.7 min
Drivers’ median age
50.0 yrs
Drivers’ average income
$106,588

Kaumualiʻi Highway is one of the more congested roads here: trips take 104% longer than at free-flow speed, against 32% county-wide.

4Kuhio HighwayPrimary road · 14,612vehicles764trucks · 5.2%
Road class
Primary road
Congestion ratio
66.3%
Median trip time
36.9 min
Drivers’ median age
50.6 yrs
Drivers’ average income
$99,791

Delays build on Kuhio Highway: its congestion ratio of 66% over free-flow time is well above the county's 32%.

5Rice StreetSecondary road · 12,114vehicles402trucks · 3.3%
Road class
Secondary road
Congestion ratio
32.4%
Median trip time
39.5 min
Drivers’ median age
50.3 yrs
Drivers’ average income
$104,089

Rice Street peaks at 12,114 vehicles a day, 48% more than the county average; trucks are 3.3% of it, below the county-wide 5.0%.

Ranked by trucks per day

Cars and light vehiclesTrucks
1Kaumualiʻi HighwayPrimary road · #3 by traffic15,569vehicles856trucks · 5.5%
2Kuhio HighwayPrimary road · #4 by traffic14,612vehicles764trucks · 5.2%
3Kapule HighwaySecondary road · #1 by traffic18,030vehicles709trucks · 3.9%
4Ahukini RoadSecondary road · #2 by traffic15,884vehicles561trucks · 3.5%
5Rice StreetSecondary road · #5 by traffic12,114vehicles402trucks · 3.3%
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

KauaiDepartment 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 Kauai County

The same traffic breakdown for the areas closest to Kauai County, Hawaii.

Need segment-level traffic data?

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