Originally Posted by AlwaysAisle

An example of how bad the traffic is at Nikko during the peak foliage season. From Tobu Nikko station to the entrance of the Toshogu temple, it is 1.5 km (0.9 miles) and it is usually a 4 min. local bus ride. During the peak foliage season, the Tobu bus is reporting 40-45 min. journey for this short 1.5 km (0.9 miles) due to the traffic. Going up the Iroha hill to Lake Chuzenji toward Oku-Nikko is the same situation. 16 km (9.9 miles) Iroha Hill is reporting 3 hrs. drive during the peak of foliage season. This is the annual event in the foliage at the Nikko area and the peak foliage season for the Nikko area is from mid-October to the end of November.

Another famous place with a foliage traffic jam is the Kiyomizu temple in Kyoto, which is famous for its Japanese maple trees. Usual 5-10 min. drive around Kiyomizu temple takes 40-50 min. drive due to the traffic. You may think it will be better to walk, but due to the number of tourists in the area, walking around Kiyomizu temple during the foliage season will make the morning rush hour at Shinjuku station look like a day at the beach.