In what should come as no surprise to anyone who has ever driven in Toronto, the city has been deemed one of the worst in the world for traffic congestion.
The newly released 2022 Global Traffic Scorecard from INRIX, a transportation software and analytics company, has ranked Toronto the seventh-most congested city in the world.
Up from 22nd place in 2021, Toronto's rise in the ranks coincides with the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, the reopening of offices, and the resumption of gatherings.
INRIX's report draws on four years of data to provide a detailed analysis of mobility within the world's most congested cities. Of the nearly 1,000 cities included, London was deemed the most congested in the world, followed by Chicago and Paris, respectively.
The average Toronto driver lost 118 hours -- or nearly five days -- sitting in traffic in 2022, marking an annual increase of 59%. During off-peak times, the average speed in the city last year was 61 km/h. During peak commute times, though, traffic slowed to 32 km/h, but went as low as 16 km/h in the downtown core.
Based on hours lost, Toronto's traffic made it the most congested city in Canada in 2022, followed by Montreal (72 hours) and Vancouver (59 hours). It was also the third-most congested city in North America, with only drivers in Chicago (155 hours) and Boston (134 hours) spending more time in traffic last year.
