No one likes being stuck in traffic due to construction, weather delays, or even seemingly nothing happening. Naturally, where you commute can affect how much time you waste sitting in traffic.
INRIX, a data analytics company specializing in transportation, recently released its Global Traffic Scorecard. The report reveals the world’s most congested cities (many of which are in the United States) and the nation’s busiest road sections.
Report finds traffic congestion has gotten significantly worse in these U.S. cities
The average amount of time U.S. drivers are “lost” in traffic has fluctuated widely in recent years, due to the influx of people working from home during the pandemic and then many returning to offices.
In 2024, drivers will “lose” an average of 43 hours to traffic jams, according to a new report. This is an hour more than in 2023, but eight hours less than in 2022, when the average “lost” time was 51 hours. In 2021, the benchmark became “lost” in 36 hours.
Cities where drivers “lose” the most time due to traffic jams
In terms of total time lost to dense traffic, New York City and Chicago are tied at 102 hours, which is more than four days wasted on congested roads. That’s an increase of one hour in New York City and six hours in Chicago compared to 2023, according to INRIX.
Both cities were ranked among the five most congested urban areas in the world, second only to Istanbul. There, the average driver loses 105 hours in traffic.
Traffic on 10th Avenue, New York City, June 5, 2024 (Jeenah Moon/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
In total, 10 U.S. cities ranked among the 25 most congested cities in the world. This includes New York City and Chicago, as well as Los Angeles, Boston, Philadelphia, Miami, Houston, Atlanta, District of Columbia, and Seattle.
Although Denver wasn’t in the top 25, it had the highest increase in traffic problems in the United States. The average driver in the Mile High City lost 44 hours due to road delays, up from 37 hours in 2023, according to INRIX. Well, traffic in Denver is close to pre-pandemic levels.
According to INRIX, here are the 25 most congested cities in the U.S. and the average number of hours lost due to delays.
New York City (102 hours) Chicago (102 hours) Los Angeles (88 hours) Boston (79 hours) Philadelphia (77 hours) Miami (74 hours) Houston (66 hours) Atlanta (65 hours) District of Columbia (62 hours)Seattle (63 hours) Nashville, Tennessee (63 hours) San Jose, California (58 hours) Baltimore (48 hours) San Francisco (46 hours) Denver (44 hours) Dallas (41 hours) Stamford, CT (47 hours) Pittsburgh (43 hours) Honolulu (45 hours) Charlotte, NC (41 hours) San Antonio (39 hours) Austin, TX (39 hours) Portland, OR (38 hours) New Orleans (39 hours) Tampa, Florida (34 hours)
According to the INRIX study, only four major U.S. cities saw a decline in traffic density. This was most evident in Boston, where delays decreased by 10% from 88 hours in 2023 to 79 hours in 2024. Other cities that saw traffic improvements include Los Angeles (1%), District of Columbia (2%), and Portland (3%).
The busiest hallway in 2024
Commuters know that some sections of the drive are more likely to experience traffic-related slowdowns than others. INRIX found that this was especially true in certain “hot spots,” mostly in New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles.
What is the cause of this “unexplained” traffic jam?
But the busiest stretch was southbound Interstate 95 in Stamford, Connecticut. The INRIX study found that between Westport and Indian Field Road, those traveling in the 8 a.m. hours experienced the worst delays. In 2024 alone, we lost about 150 drivers who used to commute on that road during those hours every weekday. Thankfully, the Stamford-area transportation corridor ranks no other than the 25 busiest transportation corridors in the United States.
Other areas where INRIX found that drivers commuting to work each weekday lose more than 100 hours in traffic congestion are southbound Interstate 93 from Boston’s Charles River to Pilgrims Highway, especially at 3 p.m. It was only during the time period.
Boston, MA – August 9, 2019: Cars commute through Sabine Hill on I-93. Neponset Circle to Boston is one of the most congested areas. August 9, 2019 (Staff photo by Faith Ninivaggi/Boston Herald/Media News Group/MediaNews Group/Boston Herald via Getty Images)
In total, seven of the busiest roads were in New York City and five in Chicago. All four were in Los Angeles.
While traffic conditions worsened in much of the United States (and the world) in 2024, INRIX reported that overall traffic growth slowed.
This trend is likely to continue, especially in New York, which recently introduced congestion pricing to reduce vehicle traffic. The company also believes other cities may “consider removing cars from downtowns and city centers to promote livability.”
“Therefore, unless there are economic, political or social consequences, urban travel is likely to continue to increase in 2025,” INRIX said. “Cities will be handling more commuters in new modes, on different days and at different times than in years past.”
You can read the entire INRIX study here.
Another recent analysis conducted by navigation and GPS company TomTom found that traffic congestion will worsen in nearly all cities by 2024. Overall, the study found that people in 90 large and medium-sized U.S. cities spend more time stuck in traffic than other cities. 2023.
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