Skip to main content

Study reveals Warsaw as Europe’s most congested city

Vehicle GPS provider TomTom is revealing details of a study into traffic congestion it had carried out across Europe. This quarterly Congestion Index involves studies of 31 major European cities with populations of over 800,000. According to the study, Poland’s capital Warsaw suffers the worst traffic congestion of any European city. For the UK, the Leeds-Bradford are has come out as the most congested area. Drivers in the Yorkshire conurbation spend an average 86hours/year stuck in traffic jams according t
July 12, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
Vehicle GPS provider 3972 TomTom is revealing details of a study into traffic congestion it had carried out across Europe. This quarterly Congestion Index involves studies of 31 major European cities with populations of over 800,000. According to the study, Poland’s capital Warsaw suffers the worst traffic congestion of any European city. For the UK, the Leeds-Bradford are has come out as the most congested area. Drivers in the Yorkshire conurbation spend an average 86hours/year stuck in traffic jams according to the study. The Index is based on real travel time data captured by vehicles driving the entire European road network and compiled from five trillion anonymous data measurements on TomTom's servers.

Drivers in the Leeds-Bradford area endure journey times up to 63% longer than normal in morning peak periods and 60% longer in the evening rush-hour. Overall, congestion in the Leeds-Bradford area slows journey times down by an average of 28%. By comparison in UK capital London traffic jams delay journeys by an average of 27% and up to 50% in the evening rush-hour, while drivers spend an average 74 hours/year stuck in traffic jams. The two Yorkshire areas have suffered a 5% increase in congestion since 2011, the biggest of anywhere in Europe. Drivers there face a delay of 36 minutes for every hour they drive in peak periods. Leeds-Bradford is now seventh in a table of most traffic clogged cities across Europe, up from 19th in 2011.

Drivers in Birmingham spend an average 73 hours/year stuck in traffic jams. Traffic in the West Midlands city is delayed by an average of 21% because of congestion with delays of up to 28 minutes/hour during peak periods. Birmingham has risen from 23rd in the TomTom congestion ranking last year to 19th in 2012. The worst days for congestion are Tuesday and Thursday in Leeds-Bradford and Birmingham, while Mondays and Thursdays are worst in London.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Europe extends engine emissions deadline
    July 16, 2020
    Europe is extending the engine emissions deadline.
  • Showcasing global road innovation at key event
    August 27, 2019
    IRF Global R2T Conference & Exhibition to Present Winning Strategies Now in its second edition, the IRF Global R2T Conference & Exhibition has quickly established itself as the international meeting point. Leading industry innovators, researchers, and stakeholders can acquire essential engineering and business insights, and help build tomorrow’s transportation infrastructure today. A newly-released programme featuring more than 150 speakers spread across 50 policy and technical sessions offers an exc
  • Road safety gains stalled in Finland and Sweden
    January 27, 2023
    Road safety gains stalled in Finland and Sweden, while crashes increased in Estonia.
  • Efficient construction leads to quality roads
    November 30, 2012
    Technology to assist the installation of quick laying, yet top-quality, road surfaces requiring less frequent repair, thus limiting costs and the number of construction sites, is being sought by highways authorities the world over. The European Union devised project ASPHALT (Advanced Galileo Navigation System for Asphalt Fleet Machines) for satellite navigation and fleet management may have found just what such authorities are looking for. Within the scope of the ASPHALT research project MOBA, together wit