According to a report released by location technology company TomTom (TOM2), Bengaluru is the most traffic-congested city in the world. As per the results of the TomTom Traffic Index, a report detailing the traffic situation in 416 cities in 57 countries, Bengaluru takes the top spot this year with drivers in the southern Indian city expecting to spend an average of 71 percent extra travel time stuck in traffic.

Bengalureans driving during peak hours spend an extra 243 hours, i.e. 10 days, three hours in traffic each year, it said in a statement. Apart from Bengaluru, the other Indian cities featured amongst the top ten most congested cities globally are Mumbai at fourth position with 65 percent congestion (same as the traffic congestion level in 2018) followed by Pune at fifth place with 59 percent congestion, and New Delhi at eighth a position with a 56 percent congestion level.

The other global cities featured amongst the top 10 include Manila from The Philippines, Bogota from Colombia, Moscow from Russia; Lima from Peru, Istanbul from Turkey, and Jakarta from Indonesia.

Mumbaikars driving during peak hours spend an extra 209 hours, i.e. eight days, 17 hours in traffic each year. Punekars driving during peak hours spend an extra 193 hours, i.e., eight days, one hour in traffic each year. Pune features for the first time in the Traffic Index.

Delhiites driving during peak hours spend an extra 190 hours, i.e., seven days, 22 hours in traffic each year. Traffic congestion has increased globally during the last decade, and 239 cities (57 percent) the company included in the new Traffic Index report had increased congestion levels between 2018 and 2019, with only 63 cities showing measurable decreases. The city’s heaviest congestion (81%) was recorded on October 23, 2019, while its lowest congestion (6%) was recorded on March 21, 2019.

This global increase in congestion, despite being an indicator of a strong economy, also costs economies billions. Werner van Huyssteen, General Manager, TomTom India, said, Globally, there’s a long road to travel until congestion levels are brought under control.

In time, the car-sharing services will help alleviate congestion, however, planners and policymakers need to use all the tools available to them to analyse traffic levels and impacts, so they can make critical infrastructure decisions.