Poás (canton)

Poás is a canton in the Alajuela province of Costa Rica.^[2][3] The head city of the canton is San Pedro.

Poás
Canton
Poás Volcano crater
Flag
Poás canton
Poás Poás canton location in Alajuela Province Show map of Alajuela Province Poás Poás canton location in Costa Rica Show map of Costa Rica
Coordinates: 10.1060104°N 84.2475285°W / 10.1060104; -84.2475285
Country	Costa Rica
Province	Alajuela
Creation	15 October 1901[1]
Head city	San Pedro
Districts	Districts San Pedro San Juan San Rafael Carrillos Sabana Redonda
Government
• Type	Municipality
• Body	Municipalidad de Poás
Area
• Total	73.84 km2 (28.51 sq mi)
Elevation	1,184 m (3,885 ft)
Population  (2011)
• Total	29,199
• Density	400/km2 (1,000/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC−06:00
Canton code	208
Website	poasdigital.go.cr

Toponymy

Named for Poás Volcano.

History

Poás was created on 15 October 1901 by decree 14.^[1]

Geography

Poás has an area of 73.84 km²^[4] and a mean elevation of 1,184 metres.^[2]

The elongated canton sits among the ridges and valleys on the southern slope of Poás Volcano. The Poás and Poasito rivers form its eastern border, while the Prendes and Tacares rivers limit the canton to the west. Poás Volcano is the canton's northernmost point.

Districts

The canton of Poás is subdivided into the following districts:

1. San Pedro
2. San Juan
3. San Rafael
4. Carrillos
5. Sabana Redonda

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	±% p.a.
1927	3,570	—
1950	5,135	+1.59%
1963	8,179	+3.65%
1973	10,191	+2.22%
1984	13,939	+2.89%
2000	24,764	+3.66%
2011	29,199	+1.51%
2022	36,207	+1.97%
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos[5] Centro Centroamericano de Población[6]

For the 2011 census, Poás had a population of 29,199 inhabitants.^[7]

Transportation

Road transportation

The canton is covered by the following road routes:

• National Route 107
• National Route 118
• National Route 120
• National Route 130
• National Route 146
• National Route 723