INRIX: Congestion Costs Each American Nearly 100 hours, $1,400 A Year

- Boston (149 hours lost due to congestion, which equates to more than six days) ranked as the most congested city in the U.S. for the second consecutive year, followed by Chicago (145 hours), Philadelphia (142 hours), New York City (140 hours) and Washington D.C. (124 hours)

- Bogota, Columbia topped the list of most congested cities in the world, with drivers losing 191 hours a year

- Los Angeles holds the two worst corridors in the U.S., where drivers on the US-101 and I-5 waste 80 and 76 hours per year at peak hours in congestion, respectively

- Philadelphia, Washington D.C. and San Francisco have the three slowest last mile speeds of 10 MPH in the U.S., meaning it is faster to bike than drive or taking the bus

- Congestion delays have decreased in four of the five most congested cities in the U.S., led by Washington D.C.'s 11 percent reduction

News provided by

INRIX

Mar 09, 2020, 00:01 ET

KIRKLAND, Wash., March 9, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- INRIX, Inc., a world leader in transportation analytics and connected car services, today published the 2019 Global Traffic Scorecard that identified and ranked congestion and mobility trends in more than 900 cities, across 43 countries. The report found that on average, Americans lost 99 hours a year due to congestion, costing them nearly $88 billion in 2019, an average of $1,377 per year. From 2017 to 2019 the average time lost by American drivers has increased by two hours as economic and urban growth continue nationally.

2019 INRIX Global Traffic Scorecard: 10 Most Congested Urban Areas in the U.S.

In the U.S., the 2019 Global Traffic Scorecard analyzed congestion and the severity of it in the top 66 urban areas. For the second consecutive year, Boston ranked as the most congested city in the U.S. with the average commuter in the metro area losing 149 hours per year to congestion, costing $2,205 per driver in time lost. Chicago (145 hours, $2,059 lost), Philadelphia (142 hours, $2,016 lost), New York City (140 hours, $1,988 lost) and Washington D.C. (124 hours, $1,761 lost) rounded out the Top 5. While known historically for its congestion, Los Angeles' (ranked sixth in congestion; 103 hours lost in 2019) constant gridlock does not have the severity as the other top-ranked cities due to its sprawling geography and massive road network. On the other hand, Wichita, Kansas, for the second year in a row, had the lowest congestion levels in the U.S. with drivers losing less than two hours a year.

"Congestion costs Americans billions of dollars each year. However, it appears to be stabilizing in some of the country's most congested metros – with delays raising roughly three percent nationwide since 2017," said Trevor Reed, transportation analyst at INRIX. "The continued innovation and investment in smarter roadway management is showing early signs of progress. To reflect an increasingly diverse mobility landscape, the 2019 Global Traffic Scorecard includes both public transport and biking metrics for the first time."

Table 1: 10 Most Congested Urban Areas in the U.S.

2019 Congestion Rank (2018)	Urban Area	Hours Lost in Congestion	Last Mile Speed (MPH)	Cost per Driver	Cost per City	Bike Access	Transit Access
1 (1)	Boston, MA	149	12	$2,205	$4.1B	Medium	High
2 (3)	Chicago, IL	145	11	$2,146	$7.6B	Medium	High
3 (5)	Philadelphia, PA	142	10	$2,102	$4.5B	Medium	High
4 (2)	New York City, NY	140	11	$2,072	$11.0B	Medium	High
5 (3)	Washington DC	124	10	$1,835	$4.1B	Medium	High
6 (7)	Los Angeles, CA	103	16	$1,524	$8.2B	Low	Low
7 (6)	San Francisco, CA	97	10	$1,436	$3.0B	Medium	High
8 (9)	Portland, OR	89	14	$1,317	$1.2B	Medium	High
9 (11)	Baltimore, MD	84	10	$1,243	$1.3B	Medium	High
10 (12)	Atlanta, GA	82	12	$1,214	$3.0B	Low	Low

The Most Congested Corridors in the U.S.

Los Angeles holds the top two worst corridors in the U.S., where drivers on the US-101 and I-5 waste 80 and 76 hours per year at peak hours in congestion, respectively. In each case, the corridor uniquely serves a large geographic area with limited alternatives. In the case of US-101, it cuts through the Hollywood Hills, while I-5 runs diagonally into the downtown core across numerous other highways.

The list of corridors is dominated by the Top 5 most congested cities in the U.S., accounting for seven of the 10 worst. Surprisingly, Tampa Bay's I-275 comes in at number nine, despite Tampa's absence on the Top 25 Most Congested Cities list.

Table 2: 10 Most Congested U.S. Roads in 2019

Rank	City	Road Name	From	To	Daily Delay (Minutes)	Yearly Delay (Hours)
1	Los Angeles	I-5	I-10	I-605	20	80
2	Los Angeles	US-101	CA-134	CA-110	19	76
3	New York City	Brooklyn Queens Expressway	Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel	I-495	17	68
4	New York City	I-95	Bruckner Expressway	George Washington Bridge	16	64
5	Atlanta	I-85/I-75	T. Mathis Parkway	College Park	16	64
6	Austin	I-35	West Slaughter Lane	East Dean Keaton Street	16	64
7	Tampa Bay	I-275	St. Petersburg	North Tampa Street	15	60
8	Chicago	I-290	I-294	I-90	14	56
9	Los Angeles	I-405	US-101	I-105	14	56
10	Chicago	I-90/I-94	I-294	I-290	13	52

How U.S. Cities Compare to Top Cities Worldwide

At the global level, Bogota topped the list of the cities most impacted by traffic congestion with drivers losing 191 hours a year to congestion followed by Rio de Janeiro (190 hours), Mexico City (158 hours) and Istanbul (150 hours). Latin American and European cities again dominated the Top 10, highlighting the rapid urbanization occurring in Latin America and cities ill-suited to automobile use in Europe.

Table 3: 10 Most Congested Cities in the World in 2019

2019 Impact Rank	Urban Area	Region	Cost per Driver	Inner City Last Mile Speed (MPH)
1	Bogota, Colombia	South America	191	9
2	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	South America	190	15
3	Mexico City, Mexico	North America	158	12
4	Istanbul, Turkey	Asia	150	11
5	Rome, Italy	Europe	166	11
6	São Paulo, Brazil	South America	150	13
7	Paris, France	Europe	165	10
8	London, England	Europe	149	10
9	Boston, Massachusetts	North America	149	11
10	Chicago, Illinois	North America	145	11

Access to reliable data is the first step in tackling congestion. Applying big data to create intelligent transportation systems is key to solving urban mobility problems. INRIX data and analytics on traffic, parking and population movement help city planners and engineers make data-based decisions to prioritize spending in order to maximize benefits and reduce costs now and for the future.

The key findings of the INRIX 2019 Global Traffic Scorecard provide a quantifiable benchmark for governments and cities across the world to measure progress to improve urban mobility and track the impact of spending on smart city initiatives.

Please visit www.inrix.com/scorecard for:

Full 2019 Global Traffic Scorecard report, including rankings for the U.S., U.K. and Germany
Interactive webpage with data and information for more than 900 cities and 43 countries
Complete methodology

Notes to Editors:
Data Sources
INRIX fuses anonymous data from diverse datasets – such as phones, cars, trucks and cities – that leads to robust and accurate insights. The data used in the 2019 Global Traffic Scorecard is the congested or uncongested status of every segment of road for every minute of the day, as used by millions of drivers around the world that rely on INRIX-based traffic services.

Research Methodology
The INRIX 2019 Global Traffic Scorecard builds on the 2018 Scorecard by identifying multiple commute areas within cities, capturing each city's own unique mobility profile. Furthermore, the 2019 Scorecard analyses travel times between modes and the impact of incidents on congestion within a city. From this multifaceted approach, a holistic understanding is achievable in an increasingly complex landscape.

The INRIX 2019 Global Traffic Scorecard calculates time lost in congestion by employing peak, off-peak and free flow data to multiple commute sub areas within a city. Peak corresponds to the absolute worst portion of the morning and afternoon commute. Off-peak is the low point between the peak periods. Commute sub areas are identified based upon the concentration of trips concluding within a defined area. An economic analysis was performed to estimate the total cost to the average driver in a city, and a total cost to the city population. Worst corridors are limited to those that have the highest traffic volume and are ranked by the average hours of delay per driver in 2019. Additional metrics are available online and in the full report.

About INRIX
INRIX is the global leader in connected car services and mobility analytics. We use data and insights to help our customers make mobility smarter, safer, and more efficient. With the ability to offer transportation services on every road in the world, we are the preferred provider of mobility intelligence for leading automakers, transport agencies and businesses. Learn more at INRIX.com.

SOURCE INRIX