City driving, under even the very best of circumstances, is often not for the faint of heart, between congestion, aggressive driving, and frequent bumps, barriers, and obstructions. But some cities definitively have it worse than others, and a new study has revealed the worst cities in the United States for drivers.
Forbes Advisor examined available data the from the 47 most populated U.S. cities to determine which are the worst to drive in. Citing the Department of Transportation, the publication notes that travel on the country's highways and streets reached a new all-time record in 2023, climbing 2.1 percent to 3.3 trillion miles, as the American workforce began to return to the office.
In coming up with the findings, Forbes Advisor examined 15 metrics in four key categories: driving experience, safety, cost of car ownership, and access to car maintenance. The metrics were then assigned point values and totaled, with the highest scores assigned to the worst cities to drive in.
Coming in first place with a whopping 100 out of 100 score was none other than Oakland, CA. Though the Bay Area city received marks across the board, it was ranked particularly poorly due to a high number of fatal car accidents, steep gas prices, and a high average commute time.
In a close second with a 98.74 out of 100 score was Miami, FL, thanks to high insurance prices, long commutes, and slow-as-molasses rush hour speeds. Another Northern California city, San Fransisco, came in third, which was found to have the highest gas prices of all 47 cities in the study, as well as sluggish commute times.
However, drivers in Houston, TX lose an average of 11 hours per year in traffic, which helped propel the Lone Star State metropolis into fourth place. Another reason for Houston coming in so high on the list? With just 1.89 repair shops per 10,000 residents, it ranked 12th worst for access to car maintenance.
Meanwhile, with a fifth worst ranking for overall driving experience, Philadelphia came in fifth place. Drivers in the City of Brotherly Love also experience the third slowest traffic speeds and spend among the most on gas due to traffic congestion.
You can see the top 10 worst cities to drive in below, or head over to Forbes Advisor for the full scores and methodology.
- Oakland, CA
- Miami, FL
- San Francisco, CA
- Houston, TX
- Philadelphia, PA
- New York City, NY
- Chicago, IL
- Atlanta, GA
- Dallas, TX
- Portland, OR
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