Discover the 20 Most Congested States in America: Frequent occurrences of traffic congestion in the United States have a negative impact on work output, daily travel, and overall quality of life. Certain states, including Hawaii, Washington, and Georgia, are notorious for their terrible traffic, which almost always results in congestion. As the number of residents and automobiles increases, it becomes increasingly difficult for these states to accommodate them. Comprehending the factors that contribute to traffic congestion is critical in order to eliminate them and facilitate movement in affected regions.
It is anticipated that the traffic control market will increase at an annual rate of 11.4%, from USD 42.3 billion in 2023 to USD 72.5 billion in 2028. Connected vehicles, an increased demand for real-time traffic information, urbanization, and infrastructure deficiencies are critical factors.
Traffic congestion is a common occurrence that can be attributed to factors such as urban population growth, automobile proliferation, and inadequate infrastructure. Traffic congestion make the implementation of effective traffic control techniques critical. It is anticipated that the United States will hold a 25% share of the worldwide traffic control market by 2033, alongside industry titans Cisco, IBM, and Siemens.
The integrated traffic systems market is anticipated to reach a value of $28.05 billion by 2022. Its value will increase by 9.03% to $66.14 billion by 2032. Traffic congestion in the United States annually costs over $300 billion. Traffic congestion cost Los Angeles alone $19 billion in 2017. For cities to expand in a sustainable manner, they must invest in innovative traffic management tools.
To cut down on traffic, we should improve public transportation, charge for using the roads, and put building changes like making areas easier for people to walk in at the top of the list. Investing in smart traffic management systems, encouraging people to use other forms of transportation, and putting in place price plans for traffic jams are some of the answers.
The trouble with traffic jams isn’t just deaths; they also pollute the air and make too much noise. Government funds are being allocated to public transportation infrastructure in India. For example, it wants to build 10,000 electric buses with $7 billion and seven train projects worth INR 325 billion to make it easier for people in nine states to get around.
Discover the 20 Most Congested States in America:
Google and Conduent Incorporated (NASDAQ: CNDT), both owned by Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ: GOOG), are working to reduce traffic jams by using advanced data and services like Google Maps. Google Maps not only gives you changes in real time, but it also uses powerful machine learning to guess how traffic will flow. Human-centered design and advanced image technologies are used by Conduent, Inc. to cut down on traffic and improve movement.
20. Georgia
63.97 vehicles per mile
Georgia, especially Atlanta, has terrible traffic problems. It is one of the most crowded states in the country. Traffic jams in Atlanta cost the average U.S. car $869 in time and $129 in gas every day.
Spaghetti Junction, Interstate 20 at Interstate 285, and Interstate 75 at Interstate 85 are just a few of the big traffic jams in Atlanta that make travel times much longer. The state is the worst for drivers based on things like the average one-way travel time and the percentage of workers who use their own cars to get to work.
19. Houston
66.57 cars per mile.
The West Loop in Houston, the Woodall Rodgers Freeway in Dallas, and IH-35 in Austin are just a few of the traffic jams in Texas. Since 2015, TxDOT has given $29 billion to projects that don’t charge tolls to help reduce traffic. Texas Clear Lanes is one of these projects. In 2021, lost time and spent fuel due to traffic delays will cost more than $3.8 billion. Truck jams will cost an additional $620 million.
18. Illinois
71.31 vehicles per mile
Illinois is one of the most crowded states in the US, which hurts both road safety and infrastructure. High traffic numbers make accidents and deaths worse, which shows how important it is to improve infrastructure and traffic control. Traffic jams put a strain on the state’s transportation system, making trips take longer and work less efficiently.
Check Out: Top 20 Countries Importing Minerals Worldwide
17. North Carolina
The number of vehicles per mile is 74.09
Because North Carolina is one of the most crowded states, it has some of the highest rates of traffic deaths and costs. From 2019 to 2022, there were a lot more traffic deaths in the state, with a 21% rise in the number of deaths per 100 million car miles.
People on bikes and foot were most likely to die in these crashes in 2022, which cost $68 billion in economic and quality-of-life costs. Reports from groups like TRIP say that the state needs a thorough plan to improve road safety and lower deaths.
16. Washington
Washington State has big problems with traffic, which hurts safety, infrastructure, and prices. The state has given more than $3 billion to transport projects, such as Move Ahead Washington, over the last 16 years.
15. Ohio
85.07% of cars per mile
In Ohio, traffic jams cost cars $5 billion a year in lost time and gas. Dayton is the least congested of the Ohio major areas. Every year, drivers spend 30 hours stuck in traffic, which wastes 12 gallons of gas and costs each passenger $627.
Ohio’s main roads are in bad shape, and 31% of them are in cities, mostly in Cincinnati, Columbus, Cleveland, and Toledo. To deal with traffic and make roads safer, the state needs more federal and state money.
14. Arizona
85.19% of cars per mile
In 2011, it cost $16 an hour for people to drive through Arizona traffic, and it cost $88 an hour for trucks. Arizona is one of the most crowded states in the US, which causes traffic jams, higher prices, and worries about safety. Because the area is growing so quickly, the transportation system can’t keep up. This makes journey take longer and use more gas.
To deal with these problems, a $400 million promise and a $95 million government grant have been made, and in 2022, I-10 will be widened. Governor Katie Hobbs stated that the state would spend an extra $692 million to make the 26-mile stretch of I-10 in Arizona safer and better.
13. Pennsylvania
87.51 cars per mile.
Traffic data from AADT for 2022 shows that Pennsylvania is one of the most crowded states in the country. The state’s traffic system is having a hard time keeping up with the high volume of traffic, which is leading to more deaths and crashes.
12. Virginia
95.59% of cars per mile
In Virginia, especially in cities, 28% of daily car miles driven are slowed down by traffic, which costs a lot. By 2000, traffic jams are expected to cost cities $4 billion. 53 strategies are being used by transportation workers to manage transportation systems, demand, and growth in order to cut down on traffic. Taken together, these steps will make Virginia’s traffic move more smoothly and help with traffic problems.
11. New York City
94.97 cars per mile.
People who drive in New York City during rush hour go only 12 miles per hour on average, and they spend 236 hours a year stuck in traffic, making the city one of the most crowded states. In 2023, more than 335 million cars will cross bridges and tunnels. This number will go up because of things like more crossings and “ghost cars.”
The city keeps track of traffic data. Tolls for cars entering Manhattan below 60th Street are being thought about as a way to deal with traffic and rising costs. As part of its plan for congestion pricing, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) wants to charge tolls south of 60th Street for cars approaching the central business area.
10. Florida
126.68 cars per mile.
More crashes and deaths happen because of traffic jams in Florida. These jams cost the states’ cities $5.2 billion a year, and Miami drivers lose an average of $1,700 a year because of them. To reduce traffic and its cost, ideas like improving traffic lights, encouraging people to use public transportation, and looking into new technologies like self-driving cars should be considered.
9. Maryland
126.69% of cars per mile
Maryland cars lose a total of $5.8 billion every year because of traffic flow. Drivers lose an average of 99 hours and $2,465 a year on traffic on the Capital Beltway and Interstate 270. Drivers in the Baltimore area lose an average of 59 hours and $1,371. The Maryland Department of Transportation has been trying to fix this problem by spending money to make roads better and improving traffic signs and incident response systems.
8. California
As many cars as there are miles, 127.20
California has some of the worst traffic in the US, so it has a lot of problems with crashes and traffic infrastructure. In 2022, there was a lot of traffic in California. There were 216,366 accidents, which killed 3,854 people and hurt 165,978. Most of the accidents happened on country roads, and 38% of them were caused by alcohol.
The study said that the most crashes and deaths happened in Los Angeles. Total traffic deaths rose by about 7.6% from 2020 to 2021, to 4,285 deaths. There were big jumps in deaths caused by drunk driving (16%) and motorbike deaths (3%), with 9% more deaths caused by not wearing helmets. About 1 in 10 deadly crashes in the U.S. happen in California, which costs the economy $242 billion.
Check Out: Discover the 15 German-Speaking Countries Worldwide: A Comprehensive Guide
7. Connecticut
133.27% of cars per mile
Between Westport and Greenwich on Interstate 95 South, which is one of the busiest traffic routes in the country, there is a lot of traffic. The state’s police offices say that 313,346 traffic stops were made in 2022, which is 39% less than in 2019.
6. Massachusetts
137.27 cars per mile.
As the sixth most crowded state in the country, Massachusetts has a lot of traffic, which makes the roads less safe and raises the cost of commuting. In 2022, one in four people who died in car accidents were walkers or bikers. This was the second year in a row that the number of deaths broke records.
The crash information shows that in 2022, MassDOT had 2,361 crashes with major injuries and 16,307 crashes with less serious injuries. 26 people were killed in traffic in 2022 in “Vision Zero” towns like Boston, Cambridge, and Somerville. Most of them were walkers.
5. Rhode Island
134.48 vehicles per mile.
Rhode Island is one of the most crowded states in the US, so its roads and traffic are always a mess. Even though the state had some of the best highway bridges in the country, only 51.93% of the roads were in good shape in 2020. That’s down from 85.18% in 2000. Traffic is really bad near Providence and important roads like I-95 and I-195. The state’s facilities will get better over the next 10 years. Rhode Island will get $5.3 billion by 2027 from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to help with traffic and gas prices.
4. Delaware
There are 149.47 cars per mile.
The roads in Delaware are in bad shape, even though the state is small. People here spend 75.29 hours a year stuck in traffic, which is less than people in New Hampshire and Connecticut. Another issue is that Delaware pays $148,736 per mile of street. This shows that running the government costs a lot of money. Bridges and pavement on country roads get good grades, but problems include high extra costs and traffic in towns. The “Toward Zero Deaths” plan was made by Delaware to deal with these issues.
3. New Jersey
Around 176.07 cars per mile.
That is one of the most crowded states in the US. People who have to drive waste more than 52 hours a year in traffic, which costs each skilled driver about $1,465. Every day, traffic jams cause almost a million hours of delays, and 40% of roads are at or above their limit. Every year, the state spends almost $300 million on highway projects to help people get around when there is a lot of traffic. In New Jersey, people who drive to work get stuck in traffic more than 48 hours a year.
2. District of Columbia
Every mile, you can see 284 cars.
Even though the District of Columbia is not a state, traffic is a big problem that costs a lot of money, causes crashes, and puts a lot of stress on the transportation system. A lot of accidents happen on Garners Ferry Road and Fort Jackson Boulevard, which makes traffic worse and puts commuters at risk. The study found that traffic jams cost drivers about $28 in extra time. A poll also showed that journeys made by car alone will be less common in 2020, which suggests that people will be using other types of transportation instead.
1. Hawaii
313.87 cars per mile.
Hawaii, especially Honolulu, is one of the most crowded states in the US, and traffic is a big problem there. When there is a lot of traffic, crashes and deaths are more likely to happen. Due to the large number of cars, the traffic infrastructure is being improved to ease overcrowding and make the roads safer. Hawaii has a long drive time, which makes it more expensive to get to work because it takes longer and uses more gas. Honolulu has the worst traffic of any medium-sized city in the US, and Hawaii is thought to be the worst state to drive in.
