As the economy hums along creating more jobs, the unfortunate byproduct has been worsening traffic.
The Texas A&M Transportation Institute’s 2019 Urban Mobility Report found that urban gridlock costs the U.S. economy $166 billion annually in lost productivity and wasted gasoline. There is no single, simple solution to the problem.
Possible remedies include more roads and mass transit, and reducing demand through telework. Adjusting work hours to better balance demand and roadway capacity, and smarter land use policies could also provide relief.
The report examines conditions in 494 urban areas across all states and Puerto Rico. The institute has also made available a nationwide interactive map of congestion conditions and dozens of ways to address roadway gridlock in its How to Fix Congestion guide.
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