What Are The Worst Cities For Driving?

The financial website WalletHub ranked the best and worst cities to drive in. Criteria included safety, gas prices, and parking, among others. WalletHub compared the 100 largest cities across 30 key metrics. The data set ranges from average gas prices to annual hours in traffic congestion per auto commuter to the likelihood of accidents.

The top cities are: Raleigh, North Carolina; Boise, Idaho; Corpus Christi, Texas; Greensboro, North Carolina; Jacksonville, Florida; Orlando, Florida; Scottsdale, Arizona; Wichita, Kansas; Tampa, Florida; and Plano, Texas.

As you might suspect, larger metropolitan areas such as New York City, Chicago, Washington, Philadelphia, and Seattle, among others, are some of the worst.

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What Are The Worst Cities For Driving?
Image: Group of young people going on a road trip. (Photo Credit: Adobe Stock/Alessandro Biascioli)
Image: Group of young people going on a road trip. (Photo Credit: Adobe Stock/Alessandro Biascioli)

Rich Thomaselli
by Rich Thomaselli
Last updated: 7:00 AM ET, Sat October 19, 2024
Sometimes, getting behind the wheel of a vehicle can be a pleasure in some cities. At other times and in other cities, not so much.

The financial website WalletHub ranked the best and worst cities to drive in. Criteria included safety, gas prices, and parking, among others. WalletHub compared the 100 largest cities across 30 key metrics. The data set ranges from average gas prices to annual hours in traffic congestion per auto commuter to the likelihood of accidents.

The top cities are: Raleigh, North Carolina; Boise, Idaho; Corpus Christi, Texas; Greensboro, North Carolina; Jacksonville, Florida; Orlando, Florida; Scottsdale, Arizona; Wichita, Kansas; Tampa, Florida; and Plano, Texas.

As you might suspect, larger metropolitan areas such as New York City, Chicago, Washington, Philadelphia, and Seattle, among others, are some of the worst.

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Professor Andre Boehman, Director, W.E. Lay Automotive Laboratory, University of Michigan, suggested that there are ways to combat the rising cost of vehicle travel.

“Invest in a more fuel-efficient vehicle, combine trips to reduce miles traveled. Keep your vehicle well maintained,” he said.

A colleague, Prof. Raul Rojas, University of Nevada, Reno, added: “The usual, a) drive smoothly, b) do not drive if you can walk to nearby places, c) plan your outings so that you might combine multiple drives to stores into a single drive.”