Britain’s roads are the third a lot of congested in Europe, with traffic problems costing motorists £30.8 billion a year. This comes from a new study that found British motorists spend on average 32 hours a year stuck in traffic.
The study by traffic analysts Inrix found Britain is only behind Russia and Turkey for congestion in Europe. London, however, remains the second a lot of congested city in the continent, where motorists were found to spend 73 hours on average stuck in traffic in 2016.
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The world’s worst traffic 2016
RankCountry2016 height hours spent in Congestion
1Thailand61
2Colombia47
2Indonesia47
4Russia42
4U.S.42
6Venezuela39
7South Africa38
8Brazil37
8Puerto Rico37
10Turkey34
11UK32
Compared to previous years, congestion levels in London have fallen from 101 hours to 73 hours in 2016, but have risen across the UK from 30 hours to 32 hours. Manchester and Aberdeen are the second and third a lot of congested cities in Britain, with motorists spending on average 39 and 35 hours stuck in traffic.
The UK’s worst cities for traffic congestion
Rank
City
2016 height hours spent in congestion
Total cost per motorist in 2016
Total cost to city in 2016
1
London
73
£1,911
£6.2bn
2
Manchester
39
£1,136
£233m
3
Aberdeen
35
£1,331
£138m
4
Birmingham
34
£990
£407m
5
Edinburgh
31
£1,009
£225m
6
Guildford
29
£812
£44m
7
Luton
29
£965
£72m
8
Bournemouth
27
£1,019
£84m
9
Hull
27
£970
£109m
10
Bristol
27
£845
£154m
The study analysed 87 cities and large urban areas in the UK and found the cost from wasting fuel, time and productivity for all motorists totalled £30.8 billion in 2016, an average of £968 per driver. Congestion was found to cost Londoners £1,911 a year, and £1,136 and £1,331 for those in Manchester and Aberdeen. Fees for Aberdeen are higher than Manchester as a higher proportion of driving is said to take place during height congestion hours in Aberdeen than in Manchester.
The world’s worst cities for traffic congestion
RankGlobal CityCountry2016 height hours spent in Congestion
1Los AngelesUS104
2MoscowRussia91
3New YorkUS89
4San FranciscoUS83
5BogotaColombia80
6Sao PauloBrazil77
7LondonUK73
8AtlantaUS71
9ParisFrance65
10MiamiUS65
Graham Cookson, chief economists at Inrix said: “Despite Brexit, 2016 saw the UK economy remaining stable, fuel prices staying low and employment growing to an 11-year high, all of which incentivizes road travel and helped increase congestion as the 2016 traffic Scorecard demonstrates.”
Cookson also advocated the use of road tolls and other fees to cut congestion: “The cost of this congestion is staggering, stripping the economy of billions, impacting services and costing consumers dearly. To tackle this problem, we need to consider bold options such as remote working, broader use of road user charging and investment in big data to create a lot more effective and intelligent transportation systems.”
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A department for carry spokesman said: “As announced in the autumn 2016 statement, we are also spending a additionally £1.3 billion over the course of this parliament to ease congestion and supply crucial upgrades to make sure that our roads are fit for the future.”
How much time do you spend stuck in traffic? tell us in the comments below….