Ahh, life on the open road. A load in back, a destination ahead, and nothing but open road in between. Yeah, right. The “open” road can still be found, but as our nation’s roadways are getting more and more congested, traffic is becoming a driver’s worst enemy. It causes unexpected delays, aggravation, and in 2011 alone cost commercial drivers $27 billion.
The number may sound steep, but when you consider that every minute drivers sit in traffic is a minute they’re not getting paid, that trucks continue to burn fuel even while stopped, and that the stop/start nature of traffic causes significant wear and tear to a vehicle, it starts to seem like a viable estimate.
Truckers aren’t the only ones getting hit however; according the study which was done at the Texas A&M Transportation Institute, the total cost of traffic congestion in 2011 was $121 billion dollars. This is because on average, it takes Americans a full hour to drive what should take only 20 minutes without traffic. That’s 5.5 billion additional hours wasted by the American motoring public per year.
The study also pointed at that the most congested cities in 2011, in order, were Washington, Los Angeles, San Francisco-Oakland, New York-Newark, Boston, Houston, Atlanta, Chicago, Philadelphia, and Seattle. In Washington, commuters take 3 hours to travel what should take them 30 minutes without traffic.
With the economy getting back on track, we’ll see the roadways getting fuller even faster than before, and considering all of the budget cuts we’re seeing at both the state and federal levels, congestion is only going to keep getting worse.
Next Story: USDOT To Study Lack Of Truck Parking
Source: thetrucker
Image Source: careersingear
Greg M says
“every minute drivers sit in traffic is a minute they’re not getting paid” How is this legal?!
Lone Ranger says
You think this is bad. What about shippers? I’ve sat for 8 hours or more to pickup a load…. Truckers get paid by the mile, NOT SITTING!
scott t says
what is the cost of uncongesting traffic? doesnt traffic implicily mean a delay or stoppage at some point?
scott t says
This is because on average, it takes Americans a full hour to drive what should take only 20 minutes without traffic. “””””””””
what does “what should take” mean?
Brian says
That’s the problem. The majority of OTR drivers agree to payment by the mile, and don’t push carriers for different arrangements. There are carriers that pay hourly for traffic delays, shipper / receiver delays, etc. Vote with your feet.
Romey says
These 5 comments above make absoluteley no sense. Demand high paying freight, and if you don’t want to sit in traffic, run at night with the outlaws, and break every single rule and reg. , run two lie books, and do as many drugs as possible to stay awake. I think that will do….
Tim Lucas says
I keep hearing about the economy “getting back on track” but I use it as a means to identify the left because there is no hint of anything getting back on track.
One trick I have picked up is the value of a fine cigar while sitting in traffic. This isn’t for everyone but a fine cigar last about an hour. To each his own.
Traffic rush hour was a time when you could pull over and sleep a few hours and finish your day around 2 am. But powers that be decided that you must in fact be part of that lost time and wasted fuel event. Those studies now have proven to be fixed and corrupted with data used to launch every intrusive weapon available. Trucking has taken it on the chin for over four years. Is anything better?
pattyj says
Excellent point.We do sit hrs waiting to get lded/unldedSitting in traffic is nothing compared to the sitting at a cust or a trkstop waiting for your next ld.