Dublin is 16th worst in the world for traffic congestion- Inrix survey

Traffic scenes along Bachelors Walk Dublin. Dublin is the 16th worst for traffic congestion in the world according to a major survey. Pic Stephen Collins/Collins Photos

Dublin is the 16th worst for traffic congestion in the world this year and is the 12th worst in Europe as measured by total hours lost - and the capital city's problems have gotten worse since the lifting of the Covid-19 pandemic restrictions, according to a major survey.

The Inrix report finds that Dublin’s traffic congestion has worsened from a global 20th worst ranking of 25 urban areas in the previous year.

Dublin’s traffic congestion is worse than in Boston which is placed 18th global worst for congestion, in Saint Petersburg at 20th worst, and in Mexico City at 23rd place, according to the Inrix scoreboard.

Inrix said it compiles the scoreboard from billions of daily data points, including mobile devices and navigation units.

London, Paris, Brussels, Moscow, and New York are the most congested for traffic in the world, according to the Inrix scoreboard.

“For nearly every country across the globe, 2021 represented a year that Covid-19 continued to wreak havoc on many aspects of life," said Inrix transportation analyst Bob Pishue in the report.

In addition to the health risks, inflationary pressures, supply chain disruptions, fuel prices and labour instability led to the continuation of substantial changes in travel behaviour.

“In terms of traffic and commuting, cities like London, who tops the Inrix 2021 Global Traffic Scorecard, are approaching pre-Covid levels of traffic, though many other cities lag, suggesting that traffic recovery will continue to be based on local conditions more than a global, widespread return to normal,” the analyst wrote.

The report, which relies on countries where Inrix has data coverage, excludes some infamously busy cities such as Lahore, Lagos, and Cairo.