Belfast and Bristol are the most congested UK cities

Research from sat-nav manufacturer has revealed that Belfast is the most congested city in the UK, followed by Bristol, London, Leeds and Nottingham. According to TomTom the average journey in Belfast takes 32.1% longer than it would if traffic were free flowing, while the average journey times in Bristol and London are 31% and 27.5% longer, respectively, than they would be on clear roads.

Journey times are – obviously – even slower at rush hour. The average rush hour trip in Belfast takes 71-72% longer than a normal trip, while in Bristol a peak time journey typically takes 56% longer in the morning and 64% longer in the evening. That means a 60 minute journey would take 98 minutes at the evening peak.

But if you find your morning drive frustrating then be thankful you don’t live in Moscow, where the average off-peak journey takes 66% longer than it would in clear traffic, or Istanbul, where journeys take 55% longer than they should. In fact, Marseille, Palermo, Paris, Rome, Stuttgart, Sydney and Los Angeles all have worse traffic than anywhere in the UK.