Economic downturn leads to 18% drop in European traffic congestion

By / 11 years ago / News / No Comments

Traffic patterns in 2013 continue on a downward spiral, with Q1 of 2013 showing a further 23 percent decline in European congestion, with drivers across Europe spending 27 hours combined less in traffic compared to the same time last year suggesting that the EU economy could be facing another tough year.

According to the INRIX Index, Europe’s Worst Countries for Traffic Congestion in 2012 were:

Country

Hours wasted in traffic in 2012

% Change 2012 from 2011

% Change Q1 2012 – Q1 2013

Unemployment Rate

Belgium

59

-12%

-1%

7.4%

Netherlands

52

-15%

-26%

5.8%

Germany

37

-14%

-23%

10.5%

France

37

-12%

-6%

5.4%

UK

29

-19%

-11%

7.9%

Luxembourg

29

+29%

+38%

5.1%

Austria

25

-19%

-39%

4.5%

Spain

25

-38%

-57%

26.6%

Switzerland

23

-11%

0%

3.2%

Italy

22

-34%

-33%

11.1%

Ireland

19

-9%

-10%

14.7%

Hungary

15

-24%

-74%

10.9%

Portugal

11

-21%

-68%

16.3%

 

‘There has always been strong correlation between the state of the economy and the level of traffic congestion on our roads. It tells us if people are employed and driving to work, going out to eat or doing some shopping, as well as whether or not businesses are shipping products,’ said Bryan Mistele, CEO, INRIX. ‘Considering unemployment hit record highs in 2012 and European household wealth dropped 13.6% to $10.9 trillion it’s hardly surprising that traffic levels have dropped significantly.’


 According to the report, the Top 25 Most Congested Cities in Europe and annual average hours wasted in traffic are:

Rank

City

Hours wasted in 2012

Hours wasted in 2011

Annual Change in hours

Percent drop since 2011

1

Bruxelles

83

92

-8

-9%

2

Antwerpen

77

88

-11

-12%

3

London commute zone

72

79

-7

-9%

4

Rotterdam

71

81

-10

-13%

5

Stuttgart

65

70

-5

-7%

6

Paris

63

70

-6

-9%

7

Utrecht

61

74

-13

-18%

8

Amsterdam

60

70

-9

-13%

9

Köln

59

70

-11

-15%

10

Gent

53

62

-9

-15%

11

s Gravenhage

52

59

-7

-12%

12

Hamburg

51

62

-11

-18%

13

Milano

51

75

-24

-32%

14

Dusseldorf

51

61

-10

-16%

15

Karlsruhe

48

53

-5

-10%

16

Lyon

46

54

-8

-14%

17

Bordeaux

46

51

-5

-9%

18

Gr. Manchester

45

54

-9

-17%

19

Munchen

44

48

-4

-8%

20

Eindhoven

43

49

-6

-13%

21

Charleroi

42

46

-4

-9%

22

Freiburg im Breisgau

42

45

-3

-7%

23

Toulon

41

44

-3

-6%

24

Grenoble

40

43

-3

-6%

25

Toulouse

40

47

-7

-14%

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