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Traffic heat map of Lincoln County, North Carolina: 290 miles of roads shaded from blue (light) to red (heavy traffic), busiest on Main Street and NC 16

Lincoln County, North Carolina Traffic Counts

Its busiest road, Main Street, carries 29,463 vehicles a day, 4.2 times the average road. This page breaks down traffic in Lincoln County, North Carolina across 290 miles of monitored roads split into 7,286 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 Volume & Performance in Lincoln County, North Carolina

Traffic

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

vehicles per day6,952
Trucks

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

7.9%
Average travel time

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

32.2 min
Congestion ratio

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

18.5%
Drivers’ average age

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

49.4 yrs
Drivers’ average income

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

$81,964

A typical monitored road in Lincoln County, North Carolina sees 6,952 vehicles per day, while its 290 miles of monitored roads together handle 2,106,860 vehicle-miles traveled per day (≈769 million per year). Trucks are 7.9% of traffic, close to the 8.7% across North Carolina.

Busier roads than 80% of counties in North Carolina

At 6,952 vehicles per day, the average road in Lincoln carries somewhat more traffic than the state average of 6,332 (10% more). In total volume terms, its road network carries about 0.8% of North Carolina's statewide total of vehicle-miles. 80% of counties in North Carolina see less traffic than Lincoln's 6,952 vehicles per day.

At 32.2 minutes, the average travel time matches the state level closely. 52% of counties in North Carolina have a shorter average travel time than Lincoln's 32.2 minutes.

At 18.5%, the congestion ratio matches the state level closely.

Highway vs. Non-Highway Traffic Analysis

highway traffic icon

Highway Traffic in Lincoln County, North Carolina

Trafficvehicles per day15,640
Trucks11.4%
Average travel time36.9 min
Congestion ratio30.2%
Drivers’ average age49.1 yrs
Drivers’ average income$77,679

A significant share of driving in Lincoln County, North Carolina, 40% of vehicle-miles, happens on highways. The average highway carries 15,640 vehicles per day, 136% more than the average non-highway road in the same area, which carries 6,628 vehicles per day.

Highways make up 22% of the monitored road miles (63 miles, 262 segments), so they carry more than their share: 834,026 vehicle-miles traveled per day (≈304 million per year).

A typical mix of freight and passenger traffic

At 11.4%, highway truck share is 6% lower than the state average. The highway traffic mix is typical for North Carolina: neither freight- nor commuter-dominated.

Lincoln's highway truck share (11.4%) is lower than 55% of counties in North Carolina. By raw truck volume, Lincoln carries more highway trucks than 62% of counties in North Carolina.

non-highway traffic icon

Non-highway Traffic in Lincoln County, North Carolina

Trafficvehicles per day6,628
Trucks5.7%
Average travel time32.0 min
Congestion ratio18.0%
Drivers’ average age49.4 yrs
Drivers’ average income$83,575

A little more than half of the driving in Lincoln County, North Carolina happens on local roads: 60% of all vehicle-miles. The average non-highway road carries 6,628 vehicles per day.

Local roads make up 78% of the monitored road miles (227 miles in 7,024 segments) but carry less than their share of travel: 1,272,835 vehicle-miles traveled per day (≈465 million per year). The truck share on non-highway roads is 5.7%.

Drivers from higher-income areas than 88% of counties in North Carolina

Compared to highways, non-highway routes see 50% fewer trucks by share.

The non-highway congestion ratio of 18.0% is in line with the state level.

Trip origins here have higher average income than 88% of counties in North Carolina. Lincoln's median driver age is lower than 52% of counties in North Carolina.

Time-of-Day & Seasonal Patterns

Data Finding: Hourly & Seasonal Patterns

In Lincoln County, North Carolina, the peak hour concentrates about 8% of the day's traffic.

Lincoln County vs. North Carolina Traffic Comparison

Lincoln County stays close to the North Carolina average; the largest gap is its average daily traffic per road, 10% above.

MetricLincoln CountyNorth Carolina averageDifference
Traffic6,9526,332+9.8%
Truck % (Total Traffic)7.9%8.7%-9.0%
Truck % (Highway)11.4%12.1%-5.5%
Avg. Travel Time32.2 min32.3 min-0.3%

How Lincoln County compares

Lincoln County moves the least traffic of its nearby counties

Compared with its 4 closest neighbours, Lincoln County moves 48.1% of the total daily travel; it has the fourth 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.

Lincoln County and the 4 nearest county-level areas by centroid distance, with the North Carolina average for scale.
AreaAverage daily trafficTruck shareDaily vehicle-milesAverage travel timeCongestion ratio
Lincoln County6,9527.9%2,106,86032.2 min18.5%
Gaston County, North Carolina8,0939.7%5,279,76333.9 min20.5%
Catawba County, North Carolina7,2598.1%4,070,87832.5 min19.1%
Cleveland County, North Carolina4,37611.2%2,482,58531.7 min13.6%
Iredell County, North Carolina7,20111.5%5,678,19931.0 min20.0%
North Carolina average6,3328.7%N/A32.3 min18.6%

Lincoln County ranked within North Carolina

Average driver income places Lincoln County #13 of 100 in North Carolina - the top quarter of the state.

Lincoln County ranked among 100 county-level areas in North Carolina (1 = highest); measures without data in every county rank a smaller field, down to 97.
MeasureLincoln CountyNorth Carolina rank
Traffic volume (AADT)6,952#21 of 100
Highway vehicle-miles per day834,026#50 of 97
Truck share on highways11.4%#54 of 97
Highway trucks per day1,785#37 of 97
Average travel time32.2 min#49 of 100
Average driver income$81,964#13 of 100
Average driver age49.4 yrs#52 of 100

Busiest roads in Lincoln County, North Carolina

On their busiest stretches, the three busiest roads in Lincoln County carry 28,578 vehicles a day on average, 4.1 times the typical road in the county (6,952).

Main Street leads with 29,463 vehicles a day, 1,687 of them trucks (5.7%). NC 16 is practically level with it at 29,420. US 321 carries the most trucks, 3,834 a day (14.3% of its traffic), although it ranks #3 for all traffic.

Trips using US 321 are long: a median of 51.4 minutes against 32.2 county-wide, the mark of a through route.

NC 16 Business draws drivers from wealthier areas: their neighborhoods average $117,206 in household income, 43% above the county's $81,964.

Trucks make up 14.3% of traffic on US 321, against 7.9% across all roads in the county.

Ranked by daily traffic (AADT)

Cars and light vehiclesTrucks
1Main StreetTrunk road · 29,463vehicles1,687trucks · 5.7%
Road class
Trunk road
Congestion ratio
38.0%
Median trip time
32.9 min
Drivers’ median age
49.8 yrs
Drivers’ average income
$68,297

Main Street is one of the more congested roads here: trips take 38% longer than at free-flow speed, against 18% county-wide.

2NC 16Motorway · 29,420vehicles2,919trucks · 9.9%
Road class
Motorway
Congestion ratio
31.1%
Median trip time
42.5 min
Drivers’ median age
47.8 yrs
Drivers’ average income
$96,738

Drivers on NC 16 are on long journeys, a median 42.5 minutes against 32.2 county-wide: a through route more than a local street.

3US 321Motorway · 26,851vehicles3,834trucks · 14.3%
Road class
Motorway
Congestion ratio
30.1%
Median trip time
51.4 min
Drivers’ median age
48.5 yrs
Drivers’ average income
$68,552

US 321 carries 3.9 times the county average at its busiest, 3,834 of them trucks (14.3%, above the county-wide 7.9%).

4Riverside DriveSecondary road · 16,088vehicles856trucks · 5.3%
Road class
Secondary road
Congestion ratio
47.4%
Median trip time
28.8 min
Drivers’ median age
48.8 yrs
Drivers’ average income
$64,560

Delays build on Riverside Drive: its congestion ratio of 47% over free-flow time is well above the county's 18%.

5NC 16 BusinessPrimary road · 15,457vehicles769trucks · 5.0%
Road class
Primary road
Congestion ratio
37.5%
Median trip time
31.1 min
Drivers’ median age
49.3 yrs
Drivers’ average income
$117,206

NC 16 Business carries 2.2 times the county average on its busiest stretch, where the median trip lasts 31.1 minutes.

Ranked by trucks per day

Cars and light vehiclesTrucks
1US 321Motorway · #3 by traffic26,851vehicles3,834trucks · 14.3%
2NC 16Motorway · #2 by traffic29,420vehicles2,919trucks · 9.9%
3Main StreetTrunk road · #1 by traffic29,463vehicles1,687trucks · 5.7%
4NC 73Primary road · 15,425vehicles924trucks · 6.0%
Road class
Primary road
Congestion ratio
32.1%
Median trip time
31.4 min
Drivers’ median age
49.0 yrs
Drivers’ average income
$99,229

At 2.2 times the county average, NC 73 draws drivers from neighborhoods averaging $99,229 in household income.

5Riverside DriveSecondary road · #4 by traffic16,088vehicles856trucks · 5.3%
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

LincolnDepartment 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 Lincoln County

The same traffic breakdown for the areas closest to Lincoln County, North Carolina.

Need segment-level traffic data?

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