The city in the US with the worst traffic is not Los Angeles or New York City

Chicago has emerged as the most congested city in the United States, surpassing last years leader, New York City, according to a new analysis. On average, drivers in Chicago spent approximately 112 hours stuck in traffic over the past year a 10 percent increase and more than twice the national average of 49 hours, based on findings from the latest Global Traffic Scorecard by INRIX.

The citys traffic issues have also influenced local planning decisions. Persistent congestion around OHare International Airport one of the nations busiest has led officials to consider adjusting the timeline of its ongoing renovation project, scheduled to continue through 2033. A separate 2024 study from DePaul Universitys Chaddick Institute reported that OHare experienced the fastest traffic growth among all U.S. airports that year.

This week, a fatal collision on Chicagos I-57 claimed three lives and injured five others after a vehicle struck a group of people standing beside an earlier crash scene.

Globally, Chicago ranked as the third most congested city, trailing only Mexico City and Istanbul. Within the U.S., other cities with severe traffic delays included New York City, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Boston, Miami, Atlanta, Houston, Washington, and Seattle.

Baltimore and Philadelphia recorded the sharpest increases in congestion among the top 25 cities, each experiencing a 31 percent rise in delays. Combined, traffic in these areas cost drivers more than $85 billion in lost productivity, marking an increase of over 11 percent from the previous year.

Nationwide, motorists lost roughly 4.7 billion hours to traffic. Certain corridors were notably gridlocked, including both directions of I-95 near Stamford, Connecticut the busiest stretch in the country followed by I-278 in New York City and I-4 near Orlando, Florida. New Yorks newly implemented congestion pricing system is believed to have prevented it from ranking even higher on the national list.

Author: Lucas Grant