Michelangelo

This country is so amazing, despite all the differences, highway congestion is one of your common bonds. After visiting all 50 states I still cant decide. What region(s) would you say have a) the worst drivers and b) the worst traffic?

JeremyDetmer

As a native New Yorker, I would have to say New York is the worst, but then again LA is known for its traffic. I would also have to say that Atlanta, Washington DC, San Francisco and Chicago are equally as bad as NY and LA.

Lara De Milo

The last post forgot to mention Boston. I think Bostonians have the worst traffic. We have this construction project thats causing worse traffic problems than anything i see in NY!

PLEASE

SEATTLE is the WORST, Hands Down. All these crazy Californians are making a mess of our freeways, and the way Seattlelites drive scares the HELL out of People from LA and the Province of San Francisco.

Resh

Speaking from my own experience, I sat in a snail-paced, 20-mile long back up my last trip to San Francisco, have you ever seen the Bay Bridge Toll Plaza, its amazing. But as an Atlanta resident, I know we rank high up there in terms of crazy driving.

anonymous

I think Seattle has the worst traffic in the nation. Our traffic is definitely worse than NY,LA and SF. We also have the craziest drivers.

cp

The results of a survey of truck drivers was announced yesterday.

Worst drivers and roads, California and Georgia, with Alabama in the running.

Dewey

When I left The Bay Area, I thought I would never see that sort of absurd driving again, but since moving to Atlanta, I feel like I'm back in San Francisco, The same idiots, well, you know what they say, United we stand.

Dewey

When I left The Bay Area, I thought I would never see that sort of absurd driving again, but since moving to Atlanta, I feel like I'm back in San Francisco, The same idiots, well, you know what they say, United we stand.

Bob Brown

I nominate a lot of places, but living close to Atlanta, I admire the state of denial most suburban commuters demonstrate. I 285 between the I 85 junction and the I 75 junction is horrific. There are exits close together, so close that many are perpetual mixing bowls. I 285 as mentioned is either a parking lot or a drag strip. Between 4 PM and 7 PM it is most likely a parking lot. Yet, when there is a tax referendum to extend the rail line, most people vote against it.
So spending 4 hours a day getting to and from work is not impossible. Two hours a day total is a short commute. But Seattle, San Fran, Dc (lived there 6 years), Boston, etc. all suffer from the same problems. Road rage is the norm and cursing other drivers is a pass time, like baseball.

Julie

Isn't it true that the worst drivers on the road are always where you want to go . . . . no matter where you are???!!

Al

My nomination for worst bottleneck is...(the envelope, please)...getting back to Boston from Cape Cod on any weekend in summertime. I can't remember the name of a particular bridge, but the traffic backs up for miles!

John

Hi all,
I and/or immediate family members (hence frequent visits) have lived in Seattle, LA, SF, Washington DC, NYC, Boston, Chicago and a variety of other places (some overseas, too) with crummy traffic or drivers.
Disclaimer: stereotyping is wrong. So... My nominations are...LA for max congestion (often at high speeds), SF for utter disregard of signals, stopsigns, sirens or other traffic management devices (IMO viewed as "suggestions"), Boston for rudest and probably winners of the "most hazardous" driver sweeps, most of Florida for reaction-impaired drivers, all of Oregon for I-don't-know-what-this-thing-is-supposed-to-do (turn signal indicators) contestants, NYC for inyerface pedestrians (Boston close 2nd), Seattle for most timid everything, and (drumroll) my nomination for the Bottleneck of Bottlenecks is... the Breezewood interchange at the beginning/end of the Pa. T'pike, where if you had any doubt that the world is run by fast food merchants, you will get over it. One blasts across this great beautiful land until it all comes to a long, grisly halt at Breezewood, where miles of overheating drivers, truckers, and momigottago kids queue up for Wendy's or some gas station. Oy.

cp

John,

You left out N. New Mexico with highest incidence of drunk drivers. They also don't know what turn signals are for.

Donna

Definitely Massachusetts! The drivers there seem to believe that you can go faster than the car in front of you, they love to tailgate, they can't stay in the same lane longer than 1/10 mile, the word "yield" apparently has a different definition there, and courtesy is almost non-existent. I learned to drive in Maryland, where they give tickets for the smallest of infractions regularly. Adjusting to driving in Massachusetts was harrowing. Where I come from, you flash your lights to ensure another driver knows your there. In MA, doing this could very well render you a victim of serious "road rage".

betsy

The worst traffic? BOSTON wins hands down. Image a major city with only a 4-Lane highway running through it and add in all the Big Dig construction and you've got TRAFFIC 24/7.
As for worse drivers, yes, Mass drivers are pretty bad, but I found New Mexico drivers to be worse. You think Mass drivers drive fast? Go to NM! Signals? It's like they dont exist. Florida has pretty bad drivers too.

2cents

I don't know who the worst drivers are, cause they're everywhere. But traffic where I live in the Bay Area is rotten. It takes me at least 1 hour to drive 9 miles to my job in SF from my apartment in Berkeley, That's 1 hour if conditions are "normal". When there are accidents and roadwork it takes a lot longer.

dan

NY traffic is not as bad as I thought it would be. In my opinion, LA traffic is far worse, and Atlanta, Chicago and San Francisco have the highest number of idiot drivers per capita.

cass

Why do we care? Do we get a prize if our city has the worst traffic or the worst drivers??? If so, give it to Seattle. They seem to want it the most.

Dayle

In the words of that brilliant comic, George Carlin, "everyone who drives faster than you is a maniac, and everyone who drives slower than you is an idiot!"