L.A.’s traffic congestion is world’s worst for sixth straight year, study says

The Los Angeles region once again topped the list of areas with the worst traffic congestion for the sixth year in a row, according to a report by INRIX, a company that specializes in car services and transportation analytics.

Drivers in and around Los Angeles spent 102 hours battling traffic congestion during peak hours in 2017, INRIX’s said. By contrast, New York City motorists spent 91 hours battling peak-hour congestion. New York was No. 3 on the INRIX list. No. 2 was Moscow.

But Los Angeles had lower peak period tie-ups than San Francisco, Seattle, Boston and Portland, Ore., the study showed. And when it comes to nighttime travel, Los Angeles city streets ranked better than those of 35 other cities.

The study found that traffic congestion cost U.S. motorists nearly $305 billion in 2017, an average of $1,445 per driver. These sums reflect direct and indirect costs. The U.S. accounted for 10 of the top 25 cities worldwide with the worst traffic congestion in the INRIX study.

Thailand topped the global breakdown with drivers in the Southeast Asian nation spending an average of 56 hours in peak-hour congestion. Other countries in the top five include Indonesia with 51 hours, Colombia with 49 and Venezuela with 42 hours.