Drivers wasted 33 hours in Seattle traffic last year
May 22, 2012, 8:28 AM | Updated: 11:20 am
According to Kirkland-based INRIX, a traffic-data firm, Seattleites wasted 33 hours in traffic in 2011, a 25 percent decrease from 2010. (AP Photo)
(AP Photo)
For the first time since 2008, traffic congestion in the
U.S.
has dropped. But you probably spent a lot of time behind
the wheel.
According to Kirkland-based INRIX, a traffic-data firm,
Seattleites wasted 33 hours in traffic in 2011, a 25
percent
decrease from 2010. The worst time to drive in the city is
Thursday from 5:30 to 5:45 p.m.
Since congestion rates dropped across the country, Seattle
jumped to seventh in the nation, up from 9th in 2010.
So why is overall traffic improving? INRIX chalks it up to
high gas prices combined with a high unemployment rate.
Thankfully, the Seattle area did not make the Top 10 Worst
Corridors list. The study concluded that drivers who must
endure those stretches of highway, mostly located in Los
Angeles and New York, spent an average of three weeks
stuck in traffic. INRIX says you could ride a bike faster
than driving these corridors during rush hour.
Across the US, the study found Friday is the worst
traffic day of the week, the worst morning commute is on
Tuesday, and the worst evening commute is on Friday. The
best traffic day is Monday.
