Motorists in Geneva spent an average of 91 hours stuck in gridlock last year, according to the latest Traffic Index by TomTom. The Swiss city was rated as having the 22nd worst traffic in the world, worse than the likes of Hamburg, Sydney, Taipei and New Delhi. 

2024 Traffic Index by TomTom

To create the index, TomTom rated 387 cities across 55 countries around the world by average travel times by car, emissions and the ease of access to traffic and road reporting. This was done using official data from each city, with a focus on infrastructure, speed limits, average amounts of congestion, travel times and average fuel prices.

In the 2024 report, London took the crown as having the worst traffic in the world. On average, a 10-kilometre journey in the British capital took 37 minutes and 20 seconds last year, with motorists spending an average of 148 hours in gridlock in 2023. 

London was followed on the list by Dublin (29 minutes, 30 seconds) and Toronto (29 minutes). In what was quite a surprise given the country’s reputation for soul-destroying, demand-inducing 15-lane mega highways, Oklahoma City in the United States was the best city on the list, with a 10-kilometre journey only taking eight minutes and 40 seconds. 

Geneva declared the worst Swiss city for traffic

According to the index, Geneva was the Swiss city most beset by traffic problems in 2023, coming in 22nd in the overall list with an average yearly congestion time of 91 hours. On average, a 10-kilometre cruise in the city takes 24 minutes and 40 seconds, an increase of 20 seconds compared to 2022. On the worst day for traffic in the city - November 30, 2023 - travelling 10 kilometres took practically half an hour!

The index noted that traffic jams hit Genevans in both the wallet and the climate conscience, with TomTom estimating that congestion costs drivers 120 francs more in fuel each year. It also leads to 150 kilos more CO2 emissions a year per car, all due to being stuck in traffic - to subsidise all the CO2 emitted by vehicles in the city, 88 new trees would have to be planted every year for every motorist.

In what will come as no surprise to those who have been caught in the daily 30-minute jam around the Gubrist Tunnel, Zurich came close behind Geneva in 28th on the overall list. Drivers in the largest Swiss city had slightly less time to wait in the queue at “just” 88 hours a year. However, the city has seen the biggest rise in journey times in the last year, with a 10-kilometre trip taking 23 minutes and 30 seconds on average - an increase of nearly two minutes compared to 2022.

10 worst cities in the world for traffic jams

In all, here are the 10 worst cities in the world for traffic (in average travel time per 10 kilometres):

1. London, United Kingdom (37 mins, 20s)
2. Dublin, Ireland (29 mins, 30s)
3. Toronto, Canada (29 mins)
4. Milan, Italy (28 mins, 50s)
5. Lima, Peru (28 mins, 30s)
6. Bengaluru, India (28 mins, 10s)
7. Pune, India (27 mins, 50s)
8. Bucharest, Romania (27 mins, 40s)
9. Manila, the Philippines (27 mins, 20s)
10. Brussels, Belgium (27 mins)

Here are the Swiss cities that were included in the study, rated from the worst traffic to the best:

1. Geneva (24 mins, 40s)
2. Zurich (23 mins, 30s)
3. Lausanne (20 mins)
4. Lugano (19 mins, 20s)
5. Basel (17 mins, 30s)
6. Bern (16 mins, 10s)

For more information about the study, check out the TomTom website.

Thumb image credit: ako photography / Shutterstock.com