LA traffic is the worst in the world

We’re No. 1! Unfortunately, we are No. 1 for time wasted in traffic. New numbers from the traffic data firm Inrix show that Angelenos spent an average of 104 hours in traffic during peak travel times in 2016. Thirteen percent of overall behind-the-wheel time was spent sitting in congestion, Inrix found.

Inrix surveyed more than 1,000 cities worldwide from Moscow to Bogota, so it’s fair to say that Los Angeles has the worst traffic of any big city on the planet.

Bob Pishue, senior economist at INRIX, notes that, “traffic truly is a double-edged sword.” While traffic is generally seen as a sign that the economy is doing well (i.e. more people are driving to work), traffic also lowers quality of life and endangers future economic growth.

Inrix estimates that traffic cost LA drivers $2,408 each in direct costs, such as the “value of fuel and time wasted,” as well as indirect c “business fees from company vehicles idling in traffic,” which are passed on to customers in the form of higher prices for products, says Inrix.

The top 10 most congested cities included New York, San Francisco, Atlanta, and Miami. New York came in third on the list, with drivers there spending an average of 89 hours in traffic.

Inrix

• INRIX Global Traffic Scorecard [Inrix]
• Silicon Valley's long workday commutes are now worse than LA’s [Curbed LA]