The worst traffic hotspots in the 25 most congested US cities

Bharath Kumar — Thu, 28 Sep 2017 12:27:22 +0000

INRIX published research on the worst traffic hotspots in America. Using INRIX Roadway Analytics, a cloud-based traffic analysis tool, INRIX analyzed and ranked more than 100,000 traffic hotspots in the 25 most congested U.S. cities. The economic cost of hotspots was also calculated in terms of wasted time, lost fuel and carbon emissions over the next decade.

“Many cities are calling for increased transportation infrastructure spending to fix ailing roads, bridges and transit networks,” said Bob Pishue, Senior Economist, INRIX. “By identifying traffic hotspots and analyzing their root causes, cities can effectively combat congestion and maximize present and future investments.”
Ranking America’s Most Congested Cities

INRIX Roadway Analytics identified and ranked 108,000 traffic hotspots in the 25 most congested cities in the U.S identified by the INRIX Global Traffic Scorecard. The ranking was determined by an “Impact Factor,” which is based on the duration, length and frequency of traffic jams. The Impact Factor score enabled INRIX Research to estimate the economic costs at the road level and provided a metric to analyze the health of the transportation network within each city or metro area.

New York had more traffic hotspots (13,608) than any other city analyzed. However, Los Angeles topped the ranking with the highest overall Impact Factor, due to the severity as well as the high number of hotspots (10,385). This also means L.A. pays the highest price, with congestion at these locations potentially costing drivers $91 billion by 2026, if congestion doesn’t improve.

The impact of L.A. hotspots, and the potential cost to drivers, was 42 percent higher than the second ranked city, New York, and three times higher than Washington D.C. (ranked third). Atlanta and Dallas round out the top five, with Chicago, San Francisco, Houston, Miami and Boston making up the top 10. The economic cost to drivers due to wasted time, fuel and emissions in the 25 cities amounts to $481 billion by 2026. When extrapolated to a national level, traffic hotspots could total almost $2.2 trillion over the next decade.

Table 1: INRIX Roadway Analytics Traffic Hotspot Ranking – U.S. Cities

Table 1: INRIX Roadway Analytics Traffic Hotspot Ranking – U.S. Cities

Rank	U.S. City	No. of Hotspots	Impact Factor	2026 Cost of Congestion	Worst Traffic Hotspot
1	Los Angeles, CA	10,385	11,692,591	$90.9bn	I-405 N at Exit 43 to Exit 21
2	New York, NY	13,608	8,215,036	$63.9bn	Brooklyn Queens Expy E at Exit 28A to W Shore Expy
3	Washington D.C.	6,097	3,758,733	$29.2bn	I-95 S at Exit 133A to Fairfax County Parkway
4	Atlanta, GA	8,554	3,714,123	$28.9bn	I-285 S at I-20 to Route 23
5	Dallas, TX	6,720	3,644,525	$28.3bn	I-20 W at Exit 451 to Exit 466
6	Chicago, IL	7,719	3,631,591	$28.2bn	I-90 W at 81A to Exit 56B
7	San Francisco, CA	2,587	3,458,305	$26.9bn	I-80 W at Emeryville to CA-4
8	Houston, TX	4,417	3,058,004	$23.8bn	I-45 S Exit 46A to Exit 63
9	Miami, FL	6,596	2,449,631	$19.1bn	I-95 N at Exit 12A to US-1
10	Boston, MA	4,158	2,429,229	$18.9bn	Massachusetts Tpke E at Boston U Bridge to Oak St
11	Seattle, WA	2,675	1,929,802	$15.0bn	I-5 S at Pike St to 128th St/Exit 186
12	Philadelphia, PA	6,232	1,896,048	$14.7bn	Mid-County Expy S at E Rose Valley Rd to Pearl Harbor Memorial Bridge
13	San Diego, CA	1,936	1,602,278	$12.5bn	I-15 N at Exit I-215 to Gopher Canyon Road
14	Denver, CO	2,258	1,226,504	$9.5bn	US-36 W / I-270 at Exit 1 to Smith Rd
15	Phoenix, AZ	3,441	1,220,561	$9.5bn	I-10 W at Exit 138 to Exit 151
16	Portland, OR	2,365	1,154,218	$9.0bn	US-26 E at I-405 to NW 185th Ave
17	Nashville, TN	2,602	1,081,459	$8.4bn	I-24 W at Antioch Pike to Rocky Fork Rd
18	Austin, TX	1,727	1,076,441	$8.4bn	I-35 N at Stassney Ln to Exit 223
19	Columbia, MD	2,856	1,046,558	$8.1bn	I-695 CCW at Baltimore Nat’l Pike to Providence Rd
20	Detroit, MI	4,284	1,019,345	$7.9bn	I-94 W at Inkster Rd to Gratiot Ave
21	Minneapolis, MN	1,903	799,619	$6.2bn	I-94 W at State Hwy 128 to 250th St
22	Stamford, CT	777	729,130	$5.7bn	I-95 S at Route 136 to Stratford Ave
23	Pittsburgh, PA	2,744	530,395	$4.1bn	Lincoln Hwy E at Fort Pitt Tunnel to Settlers Ridge
24	Baton Rouge, LA	1,090	389,416	$3.0bn	I-10 E at College Dr to Port Allen Lock
25	Santa Barbara, CA	174	146,996	$1.1bn	US-101 N at San Ysidro Rd to La Conchita
			City Cost:	$481.4bn
			U.S. Cost:	$2.2tn

Top 25 Traffic Hotspots
INRIX Roadway Analytics identified and ranked the 25 worst hotspots from the cities studied. While L.A.’s traffic hotspots dominated the rankings – five of the top 10 traffic hotspots and 10 of the top 25 – the worst hotspot was on I-95 Southbound in the Washington D.C. region near Fredericksburg, VA. Traffic jams at the I-95 hotspot occurred 1,394 times over the study period, stretched 6.47 miles and lasted 33 minutes on average, with a potential to cost of $2.3 billion by 2026 if congestion here is not reduced.

INRIX evaluated the effectiveness of recent projects around the top 25 hotspots. Chicago’s top hotspot, I-90 westbound at North Newcastle Avenue, is just 4 miles east of a recent roadway expansion project on the Jane Addams Memorial Tollway. Illinois Tollway recently added a lane in each direction, which increased westbound peak hour travel speeds by 64 percent. It also activated “smart” features, such as dynamic travel times, active lane management and “shoulder running” for buses or emergency vehicles.

Other cities around the country are making strides to reduce congestion and improve travel times. Although in the early stages, state and local governments have support to enact long-term transportation programs to ease congestion like Atlanta’s Transform 285/400, Measure M in Los Angeles, New York’s BQE Atlantic to Sands and Connecting Washington in Washington state.

Table 2: INRIX Roadway Analytics Top 25 Traffic Hotspots in the U.S

Rank	U.S. City	Worst Traffic Hotspot	Avg Time (mins)	Avg Length (miles)	No. of Traffic jams	2026 Cost of Congestion
1	Washington D.C.	I-95 S at Exit 133A to Fairfax County Parkway	33	6.47	1,394	$2.3bn
2	Los Angeles, CA	I-405 N at Exit 43 to Exit 21	23	5.12	2,032	$1.9bn
3	Los Angeles, CA	I-405 S at Exit 22 to Exit 45	24	4.98	1,403	$1.3bn
4	Los Angeles, CA	US-101 S at Exit 3B to CA-134/CA-170	355	4.22	108	$1.3bn
5	Chicago, IL	I-90 W at 81A to Exit 56B	79	8.55	238	$1.3bn
6	Los Angeles, CA	I-405 N at Exit 53 to 38B	40	5.61	680	$1.2bn
7	Washington D.C.	I-95 N at Exit 143B to SR-608	33	4.51	936	$1.1bn
8	Los Angeles, CA	US-101 S at Exit 13B to Exit 34	124	4.54	241	$1.1bn
9	Washington D.C.	I-495 Beltway at Route 201 to Exit 4A	39	5.08	684	$1.1bn
10	San Diego, CA	I-15 N at Exit I-215 to Gopher Canyon Road	177	13.71	54	$1.0bn
11	New York, NY	Brooklyn Queens Expy E at Exit 28A to W Shore Expy	64	4.37	462	$1.0bn
12	Houston, TX	I-45 S Exit 46A to Exit 63	75	5	340	$992m
13	New York, NY	I-95 N / Cross Bronx Expy at Exit 4A to Route 46	155	3.35	243	$981m
14	San Francisco, CA	I-80 W at Emeryville to CA-4	53	4.35	504	$904m
15	Los Angeles, CA	I-5 S at I-10 to CA-170	76	7.41	201	$880m
16	Atlanta, GA	I-285 S at I-20 to Route 23	74	10.38	143	$854m
17	Atlanta, GA	I-75 N at Exit 271 to I-75/I-85	62	8.99	187	$811m
18	New York, NY	Belt Pkwy E at Crossbay Blvd to I-278	115	7.16	122	$781m
19	Los Angeles, CA	I-10 E at I-5/I-10 Exit 135C to Exit 1A Santa Monica	26	9.04	422	$771m
20	Seattle, WA	I-5 S at Pike St to 128th St/Exit 186	39	6.14	406	$756m
21	Los Angeles, CA	I-5 N Exit 146A to Exit 126B	86	6.13	184	$754m
22	Chicago, IL	I-90 E at Exit 50B to I-294	48	6.56	304	$744m
23	Los Angeles, CA	I-10 W at I-110 to Exit 19C	112	3.79	218	$720m
24	Los Angeles, CA	I-405 N at Exit 70 to I-105	22	12.03	349	$718m
25	New York, NY	I-95 S / Cross Bronx Expy at Alexander Hamilton Bdg to Exit 6A	155	3.76	158	$716m

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The worst traffic hotspots in the 25 most congested US cities