If you live in one of these cities, you’ll waste your life waiting in traffic jams
If you live in Mexico City, Los Angeles, London, Beijing, or Bangkok, you're in for an ugly surprise. These cities are ranked as the world's most congested urban centers.
Two different studies published this week came up with slightly different results about the rankings, but the bottom line is this: big cities are suffocating, and drivers lose hundreds of hours each year stuck in traffic.
The world's worse offenders are Mexico City, Bangkok, Jakarta, Chongqing, and Bucharest, according to TomTom, while INRIX puts Los Angeles at the top, followed by Moscow, New York, San Francisco and Bogota.
TomTom's Traffic Index measures traffic in 390 cities and 48 countries, while the INRIX Global Traffic Scorecard ranks 1064 cities in 38 countries. Both studies take into account how many hours are lost by drivers with their cars at a standstill. Of course, things change when taking into account city size, metropolitan areas, and suburbs, which account for the differences between the two studies.
The most congested US cities
Based on the INRIX findings, the U.S. ranked as the first most congested developed country in the world, with drivers spending an average of 42 hours a year in traffic during peak hours. Los Angeles' drivers will waste an average of 104.1 hours in traffic, while New York and San Francisco fare a little better, with 89.4 and 82.6 respectively.
The direct and indirect costs of congestion to all U.S. drivers amounted to nearly $300 billion in 2016, an average of $1,400 per driver. The total economic drain caused by traffic jams is estimated at around $2.5 billion for each city, with a whopping $9.6 billion for the city of Los Angeles alone.
TomTom concurs, places Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York in the top, followed by Seattle and San José.
The most congested European cities
Moscow, London, Magnitogorsk, Paris, and Istanbul top the INRIX ranks, while Bucharest, Moscow, Saint Petersburg, London, and Marseille come first in TomTom's list.
Moscovites lose 91.4 hours sitting in traffic, while Londoners waste `only` 73.4. According to INRIX, Parisians spend 65.3 hours in traffic jams, while drivers in Istanbul, Turkey, are stuck for 58.6 hours per year.
Bucharest, Romania, has the dubious honor to snatch first place in TomTom's European Traffic index from Moscow, Russia, with an overall congestion level of 50%. Morning traffic time peaks at 90% compared with the rest of the day, while the evening is even worse, at 98%.
Next time you complain about traffic in L.A., just remember that its 62% / 84% figures are still way better that those of other big cities in the world.
Now, watch this Lamborghini traffic jam and weep.