For the second year in a row, New York City held the dubious distinction of having the worst traffic in the world – beating out Mexico City, London, and even Los Angeles in 2023. The data, which came from analytics company INRIX, blamed numerous factors – including e-commerce deliveries, bus and bike lanes, outdoor dining and high-volume for-hire vehicle (HVFHV) services like Uber and Lyft.
This year, a new question has arisen: Would congestion pricing (the plan to toll drivers who enter a zone stretching from 60th Street to the southern tip of Manhattan) help fix the city’s epic traffic headache? Although it was nearly launched this summer, it was “indefinitely paused” by Gov. Kathy Hochul in June.
Meanwhile, New York City’s terrible traffic comes with a real cost. INRIX estimated that NYC drivers lost about 101 hours and $1,762 worth of time in traffic in 2023. Compare that to a typical U.S. driver, who lost 42 hours and $733 due to traffic. Overall, traffic cost NYC $9.1 billion in 2023, according to INRIX.
Source: Patch
