Video: Traffic Congestion in the U.S.: INRIX National Traffic Scorecard Provides...

Video: Traffic Congestion in the U.S.: INRIX National Traffic Scorecard
Provides Revealing In-Depth Look at America's Most Frustrating Problem
Report ranks top 100 most congested cities and the nation's worst traffic
bottlenecks

KIRKLAND, Wash., June 17 /PRNewswire/ -- INRIX(R), the leading provider of
traffic information, today released the INRIX National Traffic Scorecard, the
most comprehensive country-wide perspective and city-by-city analysis of one
of the nation's most frustrating and intractable issues: traffic congestion.
How bad is traffic overall? Which cities have the most traffic congestion?
Where are the worst bottlenecks across the country? This new report, available
at http://scorecard.INRIX.com, answers these questions and more.
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Traffic congestion across the U.S. increased nearly 2% in 2007 over 2006
and there appears to be no relief in sight in 2008, although higher fuel
prices and the economy are affecting the rate of growth. The fallout from
heavy traffic congestion hits Americans hard on several different levels. With
many drivers paying over $4 a gallon at the pump and roads clogged with
traffic congestion averaging 60 hours a week across the nation's 100 worst
bottlenecks, traffic continues to have a major impact on consumers, businesses
and the American economy.
The INRIX Scorecard takes a micro look at traffic problems all across the
country -- zooming in on the total hours spent in traffic, worst day of the
week for commuting and average speeds for the top 100 cities in the U.S.,
along with hundreds of other details including the identification of the
nation's worst bottlenecks Americans drive through every day.
It's no revelation that cities such as Los Angeles, New York and Chicago
reign at the top for worst traffic in the nation accounting for over 50% of
the top 1,000 bottlenecks nationwide. But Honolulu? The Scorecard reveals that
traffic in cities such as Honolulu keep drivers idling, burning fuel and
raising their blood pressure on roadways choked with traffic. If you happen to
be driving on a Thursday from 5 PM to 6 PM on its main highways -- you're no
longer in the Aloha State -- you're in the worst place and worst hour of any
single roadway in the U.S., taking 88% more time to get where you're going
than if there were no congestion. If Highway 520 west bound in Seattle is your
daily commute, you could conceivably get out and ride your bike faster than
your car can take you to work, with an average speed of only 9 mph during
congested periods. And that is not the worst of it.
The INRIX National Traffic Scorecard isn't just the purveyor of bad news.
Answers to the nation's traffic problems can be better identified by
understanding where the worst bottlenecks are located, and what's causing
them. Drivers along the I-95 corridor on the east coast are poised to benefit
from just such information starting July 1st. In partnership with the 16
states representing the I-95 Corridor Coalition along the eastern seaboard,
INRIX will identify where traffic is at its worst, enabling drivers to have
access to real-time information on traffic flows, crashes and travel times to
help them anticipate and avoid delays.
The INRIX National Traffic Scorecard was created through extensive
analysis of nearly 50,000 miles of primary roadways, using INRIX's traffic
data warehouse of the most recent and accurate data available anywhere.
Government agencies, state DOTs, research organizations and others looking for
solutions to traffic problems can incorporate the Scorecard findings into
their research and planning initiatives. Along with hundreds of significant
findings, the Scorecard revealed:

The top 10 most congested metropolitan areas in the U.S. span all regions

1. Los Angeles, CA
2. New York, NY
3. Chicago, IL
4. Washington D.C.
5. Dallas-Fort Worth, TX
6. San Francisco, CA
7. Houston, TX
8. Boston, MA
9. Seattle, WA
10. Atlanta, GA

"INRIX is headquartered in Seattle, Washington and the worst traffic
bottleneck in our city is directly across from our corporate headquarters --
so we're definitely feeling the pain ourselves," said Bryan Mistele, INRIX
founder and CEO. "Our business is built on knowing what's going on with
traffic day in and day out across the U.S. Utilizing our extensive data
warehouse to develop the most comprehensive information available was a
logical and timely endeavor for our company. The Scorecard, and the data
powering the report, will help consumers, businesses and public officials
better understand the flow of traffic and apply that information toward
improved transportation planning and the avoidance of traffic."
The INRIX National Traffic Scorecard also identified unique patterns
evolving out of U.S. traffic congestion:
Worst Traffic Day: Friday
Worst Week Day Commute: Friday PM
Worst Commuting Hour: Friday 5-6 PM
Worst Morning Commute: Wednesday AM
Best Week Day for Traffic: Monday
Best Week Day Commute: Friday AM
Best Week Day Commuting Hour: Friday 6-7 AM
Best Week Day Afternoon: Monday PM

The INRIX National Traffic Scorecard is the first to measure the nation's
traffic congestion problems by going beyond the traditional limitations of
road sensors and statistical sampling techniques to evaluate real-time traffic
on almost every major metropolitan roadway nationwide. It leverages INRIX's
Smart Dust Network, the first truly national traffic data collection network
which uses a revolutionary approach to collecting traffic information. The
network collects data from nearly one million anonymous, GPS-equipped
commercial vehicles that report their speed and location continually to INRIX.
INRIX then processes and blends other relevant traffic-related data such as
road sensors, toll tags, traffic incident data and other resources to provide
the most comprehensive and accurate traffic information available.
Rankings and scorecards of the 100 Most Congested Cities, along with an
executive summary of the report findings are now available at the INRIX
National Traffic Scorecard website at http://scorecard.INRIX.com. The
extensive data powering the INRIX National Traffic Scorecard is immediately
available under license for further analysis and review by government agencies
and commercial organizations including transportation industry organizations.
The INRIX National Traffic Scorecard is currently slated for publication
semi-annually and will continue to provide the most up-to-date information
available anywhere regarding overall traffic congestion and specific
bottlenecks on major roadways across the U.S.
About INRIX
INRIX(R) is the leading provider of accurate real-time, historical and
predictive traffic information in North America and Europe, with over 55
customers and industry partners including TomTom, MapQuest, Microsoft, Clear
Channel Radio's Total Traffic Network, TeleNav, I-95 Corridor Coalition, Tele
Atlas, deCarta, ITIS Holdings, Mio, Navigon, TCS, Telmap, ANWB, ARC
Transistance, and TNO. INRIX delivers the highest quality data and broadest
coverage available for personal navigation, mapping, telematics and other
location-based service applications in the car, online and on mobile devices.
INRIX Traffic Services leverage sophisticated statistical analysis techniques,
originally developed by Microsoft Research, to aggregate and enhance
traffic-related information from hundreds of public and private sources,
including traditional road sensors and the company's unique network of over
800,000 GPS-enabled vehicles and cellular probes. INRIX delivers traffic
information today for over 100 markets in North America and via ARC
Transistance for 16 European countries. To experience the traffic technology
revolution behind the next generation of navigation and location-based service
applications, visit www.INRIX.com.
INRIX is a registered trademark of INRIX, Inc. in the United States and/or
other countries.
The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the
trademarks of their respective owners.
SOURCE INRIX

K. Michele Large of INRIX, +1-425-284-385, Michele@INRIX.com; Michelle Blaya
of Weber Shandwick for INRIX, +1-310-854-8243, mblaya@webershandwick.com