Only 3 U.S. Cities Have Worse Traffic Than NYC

NEW YORK — New York City drivers should remember one thing the next time they're stuck in traffic: It could be worse. The Big Apple is less congested than three United States metropolises despite being home to the nation's worst traffic corridor, a new study shows.

New York ranked as the fourth-most congested urban area in the U.S. on the 2018 INRIX Global Traffic Scorecard examining more than 200 cities across the world. The annual report, released Monday, is based on data from 300 million sources covering more than 500 miles of road.

New Yorkers lose an average of 133 hours and $1,859 per driver to traffic congestion each year, the report says. But Boston, which topped INRIX's American ranking, has it far worse — congestion costs the city's residents an average of 164 hours and $2,291 per driver a year.

Washington, D.C. and Chicago also ranked above New York at No. 2 and 3, respectively, with their residents each losing 155 and 138 hours to congestion on average, the report says.

"Congestion costs Americans billions of dollars each year," INRIX transportation analyst Trevor Reed said in a news release. "It will continue to have serious consequences for national and local economies, businesses and citizens in the years to come."

While other cities' drivers suffer more in the aggregate, New York remained the home of America's most congested road. The Cross-Bronx Expressway topped INRIX's list of the worst U.S. traffic corridors for the fourth straight year, with drivers delayed 114 hours in traffic annually at peak hours between the Bruckner Expressway and the Trans-Manhattan Expressway, according to the firm.

Traffic in American cities pales in comparison to other parts of the world, the INRIX report shows. Moscow topped the company's global list, followed by Istanbul, Turkey; Bogota, Colombia; Mexico City; and Sao Paolo, Brazil. Boston ranked eighth worldwide, while New York placed 40th.

INRIX named the Big Apple the globe's second-most congested city last year, tied with Moscow just behind Los Angeles. But the firm says this year's report isn't directly comparable to last year's because of different metrics and analysis criteria.

Here are the nation's 10 most congested urban areas, according to INRIX, along with their worldwide rank. See the full scorecard here.

1. Boston (8)
2. Washington, D.C. (19)
3. Chicago (23)
4. New York City (40)
5. Los Angeles (47)
6. Seattle (58)
7. Pittsburgh (59)
8. San Francisco (65)
9. Philadelphia (69)
10. Portland, Oregon (70)

(Lead image: Heavy traffic moves along the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway in November 2018. Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)