Bengaluru and the worst traffic congestion is a never-ending story. The darling city has now surpassed 415 other cities across 57 countries to gain the title of ‘world’s most traffic-congested city’ in 2019.
Worst Traffic in the World
According to a report published by TomTom, the Netherlands-based global provider of navigation, traffic and map results, India’s tech giant Bengaluru has defeated 415 other cities across 57 countries to earn the title in 2019.
“India’s tech giant holds the top spot this year with drivers in the southern Indian city claiming to spend an average of 71% extra travel time stuck in traffic,” TomTom said in the ninth edition of its annual Traffic Index.
The Philippines, with a similar 71% traffic gridlock stands second in the list. Among the top five worst traffic affected cities are Mumbai and Pune from India at the fourth and fifth place respectively, while Bogota, Colombia is on the third spot. New Delhi stood at 8th place.
Time spent in Bengaluru traffic
Coming to Bengaluru, the sources indicated that there are currently 291 traffic jams in the city, running up to 145.7 km. Last year, a commuter spent an extra 243 hours in traffic while driving during peak hours.
The report added that during the time spent on roads, these people could have planted 244 trees, watched 215 episodes of Game of Thrones or watched 139 football matches.
Bengaluru recorded the least traffic on 6 April last year and the highest was on 20 August when it registered 103% congestion.
The most critical rush hours
The most critical rush hours are recorded for Fridays between 7 PM and 8 PM. Travelling after 8 PM on Friday could save you up to 5 hours per year, the report said.
The research talks about Bengaluru traffic congestion that had increased globally in the last decade. The 239 cities that TomTom included in the new traffic index report showed increased congestion levels between 2018 and 2019, with only 63 cities witnessing a moderate decline.
The report by Dutch navigation and mapping company ranks cities by the average time added to a trip. It also includes details on when congestion is heaviest and lightest, and how much time drivers wasted waiting for other drivers to get out of their way.
