Transportation analytics firm INRIX has published its 2021 Global Traffic Scorecard, highlighting the amount of time lost due to congestion.
With analysis from more than 1,000 cities across 50 countries, INRIX ranked London as the most congested city in the world, with the average driver losing 148 hours a year because of traffic.
Paris ranked second, just ahead of Brussels in third, with New York the first non-European city in fifth. Seven of the top 10 countries in terms of congestion are based in Europe.
While congestion has fallen since the pre-COVID period, it remains far too high according to Voi UK and Ireland General Manager Jack Samler.
“Across the UK as a whole, drivers will waste an average of 73 hours in traffic this year, according to this report,” he said.
“This underlines why we urgently need to rethink the way we travel and particularly the space given over to cars. Even in cities such as Bristol, where traffic is 35 per cent below its pre-pandemic levels, people are still losing 66 hours a year to traffic jams – nearly three days of their lives. This is unacceptable.
“We have to stop giving space over to cars which pollute our streets and cause accidents. Instead, we should make space for electric shared micromobility, including e-scooters and e-bikes that take up much less space, reduce congestion and pollution and allow traffic to flow more freely. By focusing on shared mobility instead of cars, we can allow people to reclaim their time back from traffic jams and help make our cities happier and healthier places to live.”
The Swedish micromobility operator has pledged to replace one billion car journeys across Europe by 2030 in a bid to reduce congestion levels throughout the continent.
