Has LA traffic always been bad?

Los Angeles has always struggled with congestion. Its population grew rapidly at the same time that cars became widely available, and the city's early suburbs, which were well served by transit, attracted car owners. Growing car traffic slowed the transit that many relied on.



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Los Angeles ranked as No. 6 in the U.S. with drivers losing the most hours in traffic. Chicago took the top spot, with drivers there losing 155 hours, followed by Boston (134 hours), New York (117 hours), Philadelphia (114 hours), and Miami (105).

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1 U.S. city with the worst traffic: Chicago, IL. Chicago ranked as the U.S. city with the highest traffic delays in 2022.

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On average, people in the City of Angels spend 153 hours per year on the road, 81 of those due to jams and congestion. Compare that with San Diego, where residents spend 80 hours per year driving, and 21 hours in congestion.

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The 5 Worst Cities for Traffic in California
  1. San Francisco.
  2. Los Angeles. ...
  3. San Diego. ...
  4. Concord. This charming East Bay Area city hides an ugly truth: drivers spend 54 hours in congested traffic every year. ...
  5. Sacramento. The state's capital has one of the worst soul-crushing rush hours. ...


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And finally, San Francisco wins the prize of worst traffic in California. Every morning, millions of people commute into the city from neighboring towns and suburbs, causing traffic jams on bridges and main roads. Congested traffic costs each driver $1,642 annually.

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But hey, at least we climbed a spot from the cellar of 2022 Clever's study of the best and worst U.S. cities for commuters in 2023 pegs Atlanta as a bottom-five finisher in terms of hellacious, expensive, time-consuming commutes—one spot worse than, gulp, Los Angeles.

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Stick to the Neighborhoods The best advice for avoiding being stuck in traffic is to stay off the interstates at peak times, generally from 7 to 10 in the morning and 3 to 7 in the evening.

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Chicago ranked as the U.S. city with the highest traffic delays in 2022. On a global scale, the Illinois city ranked No. 2, after London in the United Kingdom. In Chicago, drivers lost 155 hours in 2022.

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Top 10 worst states to drive in
  • New Jersey.
  • California.
  • West Virginia.
  • Missisippi.
  • Maryland.
  • Florida.
  • Hawaii.
  • Delaware.


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The stretch of I-95 South from Westport to Greenwich ranked as the most congested corridor in the United States.

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Avoid LA Traffic with Mass Transit One of the best ways to avoid L.A. traffic is to stick to mass transit. L.A. has an extensive and affordable subway system. You can park at any number of easy to get to stations and take the subway right downtown. You'll skip traffic jams and never have to worry about parking.

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