Traffic In New York City Now Worst In The World, Literally: Report

MIDTOWN, NY – Traffic in New York City was the worst in the world last year, surpassing congestion in Mexico City, London, and yes, even Los Angeles.

It’s the second year in a row that NYC has nabbed the dubious distinction, according to recently released data from INRIX, an analytics company based in the Seattle area.

Why? The New York Times reported on the issue this week, and while numerous factors – including e-commerce deliveries, bus and bike lanes, e-bikes, and outdoor dining – contribute to the issue, one culprit looms large: the ongoing expansion of for-hire vehicle (FHV) services like Uber and Lyft, which have added tens of thousands of cars to the city’s streets.

“Almost any motorist who is paying attention can see that the vast majority of the congestion during the day – and for that matter, a lot of weekends as well – is the influx of a gross number of Ubers and Lyfts,” Lucius Riccio, a former Department of Transportation commissioner, told the Times.

Recent data suggests that close to 100,000 app-based rideshare vehicles prowl the city’s streets. About 9,000 taxis were active as of earlier this year.

Mayor Eric Adams lifted a longstanding cap on the number of cars Uber and Lyft could have in the city last fall, provided that all new rideshare vehicles are electric. Although Adams’ move has hit roadblocks in court, both Uber and Lyft incentivize drivers to utilize electric vehicles.

The problem is, cars are still cars, and simply put, more cars on the street tends to mean more traffic.

To the untrained eye, FHVs like Uber and Lyft are almost indistinguishable from passenger vehicles, and Riccio, the former DOT boss, told the Times that the city ought to consider mandating Uber and Lyft, “adhere to a certain color scheme – say, gray – the same way taxis must be yellow or green.”

A clear color scheme, in Riccio’s view, would make the primary cause of New York City's terrible traffic self-evident.

Proposals to cap FHV licenses in the city have largely stalled since the late 2010s, when the public – and city and state officials – pondered whether or not they preferred congestion pricing to a cap on rideshare services like Uber and Lyft.

The new question appears to be whether or not congestion pricing – or the plan to toll drivers who enter a zone stretching from 60th Street to the southern tip of Manhattan – could be the right fix for the city's epic traffic headache.

Although congestion pricing was nearly implemented this summer, it was “indefinitely paused” by Governor Kathy Hochul in June.

Despite its name, congestion pricing is something of a misnomer: although it would likely decrease traffic – it’s estimated that congestion pricing would result in 17% fewer vehicles in Midtown and Lower Manhattan – the program is less about traffic and more about the creation of a much-needed new revenue stream for public transit.

Were congestion pricing implemented, for-hire vehicles like Uber and Lyft would face a mealy surcharge of only $2.50 per ride, and taxis only $1.25.

Meanwhile, New York City’s terrible traffic comes with a real cost.

INRIX estimated that New York City 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 New York City $9.1 in 2023, according to INRIX.