Manchester the third most congested city in the UK
Manchester ranks as the third most congested city in the UK, with commuters spending over five days stuck in traffic per year.
Bad traffic increases travel times in Manchester by 37% according to the 2015 TomTom Traffic Survey, which shows Belfast as the worst affected city closely followed by London.
A spokeswoman for the Department for Transport said that the UK government is “providing a record £12 billion” to tackle congestion in cities across the UK.
But Ralf-Peter Schaefer of TomTom Traffic explains that building new roads will not eliminate the problem.
He said: “People simply aren't doing enough to change their travel habits - such as working flexible hours, avoiding peak commuting times, making use of real-time traffic information and trying alternative travel modes.
“If only 5% of us changed our travel plans we could improve traffic congestion on our main roads by up to 30%.”
Of the 25 most congested UK cities listed in the 2015 TomTom Traffic Survey, only four have a shown a decrease in congestion, among them Preston.
Motorists in those 25 cities spend an average of 127 hours per year stuck in traffic.
Overall, congestion across the UK has risen by 14% in the last 5 year, while the rest of Europe has experienced a 3% decline.