The wide open road, the wind in your hair, the perfect playlist — these are the makings of a summer road trip. Yet no matter how well-oiled your road trip plans are, there's one thing you can't anticipate: traffic. If you were driving along the highway toward a summer destination over the Fourth of July weekend, know that you were one of the over 61 million or more Americans on the road during that period.
A study conducted by ConsumerAffairs may just save your future summer road trip from bumper-to-bumper
traffic. Data on commute times, hours spent in gridlock, and accident-related incidents helped the consumer review platform pinpoint the best and worst cities for traffic across the United States. Among the 50 metropolitan areas, Rochester, New York emerged as the city that offers the path of least (traffic) resistance for chill summer road trips. And if you're eager to steer clear of reckless mistakes during your next road trip, cross out Washington D.C. from your itinerary, as results have shown that our nation's capital is the city where you're bound to encounter a traffic jam. Let's delve into the top three cities that promise roads free from traffic — and the ones that don't.
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Rochester Tops The List With The Best Traffic Conditions
When driving through the streets of Rochester, New York, traffic is the least of your problems. Scoring first in ConsumerAffairs' ranking of major metros with the mildest traffic conditions, the upstate New York city boasts an average commute time of 21.2 minutes, 12.2 minutes less than the 33.4 minutes that Washington D.C. residents undergo. Geolocation company TomTom's 2024 study of worldwide traffic patterns painted Rochester in a flattering light as well, revealing the city's average travel time of under 13 minutes per 6.2 miles traveled — not bad for a place where 89.7% of commuters take their cars to work, per U.S. News.
With the threat of traffic jams out of the way, road trippers will find smooth-sailing roads southeast of the city to the Finger Lakes, a lake paradise dotted with award-winning wines and culinary charm in one of New York's prettiest regions. The area is a worthy stop for indulging in the unique craft beverage scene that boasts over 30 wineries, breweries, and distilleries. Otherwise, drive to the Letchworth State Park to marvel at the waterfalls, hiking trails, and gorges that earned its nickname the "Grand Canyon of the East." Rochester lies along the western Lake Ontario stretch, one of the four sections of the 512-mile Great Lakes Seaway Trail, which is a lovely route to drive in summer to catch the blossoming trees.
Salt Lake City Answers The Call Of Gridlock-Free Streets
Just behind Rochester, Utah's Salt Lake City has some of the country's best traffic conditions. TomTom's 2024 traffic index showed commuters spending just 22 hours a year stuck in rush hour traffic — way less than the whopping 98 hours New Yorkers are subject to. Salt Lake City's traffic statistics improved in just a year's time, with the average commute time clocking in at just 23.8 minutes, per ConsumerAffairs. Utah gets a fair amount of snowfall, prompting the closure of several roads between November and June, so plan your road trip for the summer to take advantage of the open roads.
Salt Lake City's favorable road conditions open up access to a number of quick weekend road trips around the city, sans gridlock, of course. Escape the crowds with a charming day trip to Spring City, which takes you through some of Utah's best-preserved buildings. The Antelope Island State Park is a speedy 55-minute drive from Salt Lake, where you'll likely come across the park's herd of roaming bison (some travelers suggest bringing insect spray to combat the island's summertime gnats). Park your car at Park City, a resort town an hour out from Salt Lake City. For longer road trips, set your GPS to St. George, where the Instagram-worthy state parks Snow Canyon and Sand Hollow feature red sandstone cliffs, lava rock beds, and sculpted sand dunes in all their glory.
Cleveland Has Ohio State's Smoothest Flowing Roads
Third on the list of best traffic cities is Cleveland, Ohio. ConsumerAffairs statistics reveal that commuters face only one hour and 23 minutes of weekly congestion time, a far cry from the United States' average of three hours and 45 minutes. Cleveland has also been proactive in slowing down car speeds on its streets by adding longer, stretched out speed bumps in residential areas to prevent car accidents, with successful results: Per 100,000 people, a mere 7.60 succumb to fatal car crashes compared to the country's 11.33 average.
Cleveland residents are proud of their smooth-flowing roads. "I spent 20 years driving in New Jersey and compared to there, there is almost zero traffic here. A lot more people drive the speed limit, so that can be fun, but I can get pretty much anywhere I need to go with extreme ease," a user shared in a Cleveland subreddit. "Compared to many American cities, traffic in Cleveland is nearly nonexistent," another Redditor confirmed.
To take advantage of the open roads, cruise 20 miles south via I-77 to Cuyahoga Valley National Park, taking in the scenic Towpath Trail's Ohio and Erie Canal route. Spread your towel at the sands of Lake Erie's 35-acre beach at Headlands Beach State Park, located 30 miles north of Cleveland. If wineries are up your alley, stop and sip at any of the 30-or-so wineries that dot Ashtabula, Ohio's wine country.
Dodge These Cities With The Worst Traffic Conditions
On the flip side, certain cities have the ability to crush your road trip dreams to an unfortunate standstill. The nation's capital, Washington D.C., received the dubious honor of having the worst traffic in the U.S., nabbing the crown from 2024's winner (or loser, if you really think about it), Los Angeles. Washington has its commuters stewing in gridlock for an average of 6.5 hours on a weekday, a hair-pulling 4.1 hours more than Rochester commuters. The situation is dire enough to have its citizens scheduling their work hours around the traffic, per the BBC. As for Los Angeles, weekday congestion can reach up to eight hours, surpassing the country's average by almost five hours. That amounts to a sobering 85 days of traffic in a year, which makes a strong case for avoiding the city during road trips. Instead, consider San Diego for a California road trip, where traffic conditions fare better than Los Angeles.
Rounding up the list of worst traffic cities are Miami, whose commute time hovers around the 29.2 minute mark; San Francisco, where residents generally face travel times of 32 minutes; and Atlanta, whose five-hour weekday traffic average stole the fifth place from its former titleholder, New York City.
Urban planning professor Michael Manville sheds some insight into the study's rankings. "Congestion is oftentimes a sign of economic prosperity," the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs professor stated in the Consumer Affairs study. The influx of more job opportunities brings more people populating a city, leading to understandable traffic. Manville isn't surprised that cities like Rochester or Salt Lake seldom face congested roads, being "places that were once centers of industry, but (they) are no longer."
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