Bristol named second worst UK city for congestion
Only drivers in London spent more time sat in traffic last year
Last updated 6th Jan 2025
Bristol was the second most congested city in the UK last year, according to research by traffic analysis company Inrix.
The average driver in Bristol spent 65 hours sat in traffic in 2024, only behind the capital London where the average driver spent 101 hours in congestion. Leeds was the third worst, with drivers spending an average of 60 hours in traffic.
The ranking is based on the length of delays, weighted by the size of each city's population.
Bob Pishue, Inrix transportation analyst and author of the report, said: "While the UK did see a slight increase in congestion again this year, overall congestion has remained steady.
"Roadworks in key corridors such as M25 Wisely interchange caused considerable traffic on a main artery into the capital.
"Interestingly it was cities outside of the capital that saw the greatest increase in congestion with Manchester seeing a large increase, up 13%.
"While London only had a modest increase in time lost, it still represented half of the entire country's delay."
Inrix said London contained most of the worst corridors for traffic delays in the UK because of the "concentration of population, employment and economic activity".
To try and address the issue in recent years the West of England Combined Authority, which funds improvements to transport infrastructure across the region, has helped open two new train stations at Portway Park and Ride and Ashley Down.
It has also funded the Birthday Bus scheme which gives residents across Bristol, Bath and the wider area a free bus pass for the whole of their birthday month, both of which are attempts to get people out of their cars.
Greatest Hits Radio has also contacted Bristol City Council for comment.
London was also named the worst place in Europe for traffic, with Paris second worst across the continent and Dublin third.