The TomTom Traffic Index, an annual report that provides data and information on traffic trends in 387 cities in 55 countries throughout 2023 makes for grim reading for Dublin motorists.
The TomTom Traffic Index is based on data from over 600 million in-car navigation systems and smartphones.Dublin is the city where commuters lose the most time in rush-hour traffic jams.
For each city TomTom calculates the average travel time per kilometer from the time it took to cover the millions of kilometers driven across the entire network in the year 2023.
The trend over 2023 confirms the general decline in average speeds in most cities: of the 387 cities analyzed in the traffic index, 82 saw their average speed remain unchanged, and 77 had a higher average speed (and therefore shorter journey times) than the previous year. In the remaining 228 cities, average speeds decreased.
In London and Dublin, the two cities with the lowest average speed, travel times for a 10-kilometer journey increased by +1 minute compared to 2022.
The increase in both the cost of petrol and fuel consumption, due to longer journey times, has a clear impact on the budget of motorists .
In more than 60% of 351 cities where TomTom aggregates fuel prices, the average budget in fuel increased by 15% or more between 2021 and 2023.
This increase in consumption naturally has a direct impact on average CO2 emissions per vehicle.
TomTom Traffic Index – 2023 Rankings
ALL-YEAR AVERAGES THROUGH 2023 (24/7)
Average travel time for a 10-kilometer trip in 2023, in minutes/seconds
| City center
(5km radius) |
2023 | vs 2022 | Metro. Area
(wider area) |
2023 | vs 2022 | |
| London | 37 min. 20” | +1 min. 00” | Manila | 25 min. 30” | +0 min. 50” | |
| Dublin | 29 min. 30” | +1 min. 00” | Lima | 24 min. 20” | +0 min. 30” | |
| Toronto | 29 min. 00” | +0 min. 50” | Bengaluru | 23 min. 50” | -0 min. 40” | |
| Milan | 28 min. 50” | +0 min. 20” | Sapporo | 23 min. 30” | -0 min. 50” | |
| Lima | 28 min. 30” | +1 min. 20” | Bogota | 23 min. 30” | -1 min. 10” |
Average time lost due to congestion in 2023
This ranking only reflects the impact of dynamic factors that increase base speed under free-flow conditions.
Ranking: The five most congested cities
Average time lost due to traffic for a 10-kilometer trip in 2023, in minutes/seconds.
| City center
(5km radius) |
2023 | vs 2022 | Metro. Area
(wider area) |
2023 | vs 2022 | |
| London | 12 min.31” | +0 min. 33” | Manila | 9 min. 22’’ | +0 min. 41” | |
| Mexico-city | 12 min.05” | +1 min. 03” | Bogota | 9 min. 17’’ | -0 min. 46” | |
| Lima | 12 min.04” | +1 min. 05” | Bengaluru | 9 min. 08’’ | -0 min. 34” | |
| Bengaluru | 11 min.54” | -0 min. 49” | Lima | 8 min. 31’’ | +0 min. 22” | |
| Dublin | 11 min.44” | +0 min. 31” | Mumbai | 7 min. 54’’ | -0 min. 12” |
London’s road infrastructure is not the only reason why travel times are slower than in any other city in the world:
London is also the city in which motorists have lost the most time due to traffic congestion. A 10-kilometer journey in 2023 is 12 minutes and 31 seconds longer on average than the optimum journey time (i.e. with no traffic at all).
THE IMPACT OF DRIVING AT RUSH HOURS
Impact of peak-hour congestion on commuter travel times
Ranking: The five cities where rush-hour traffic is the most time-wasting
Average time lost in 2023 for a 10-kilometer daily round trip driven at morning & evening peak hours (total 20 km/day), in hours.
| City center (5km radius around center) | Av. travel time per day | Av. time lost due to traffic | ||
| per day | All year | vs. 2022 | ||
| Dublin | 1 hr. 17 min. | 41 min. 28” | 158 hrs. | +12 hrs. 58 min. |
| Lima | 1 hr. 13 min. | 40 min. 59” | 157 hrs. | +26 hrs. 13 min. |
| Mexico-city | 1 hr. 08 min. | 39 min. 50” | 152 hrs. | +20 hrs. 12 min. |
| Bucharest | 1 hr. 14 min. | 39 min. 10” | 150 hrs. | +6 hrs. 42 min. |
| London | 1 hr. 28 min. | 38 min. 41” | 148 hrs. | +9 hrs. 17 min. |
| Metropolitan area | Av. travel time
/day |
Av. time lost due to traffic | ||
| per day | All year | vs. 2022 | ||
| Bogota | 1 hr. 02 min. | 29 min. 10” | 117 hrs. | -14 hrs. 49 min. |
| Manila | 58 min. | 29 min. 00” | 117 hrs. | +12 hrs. 51 min. |
| Lima | 1 hr. 02 min. | 28 min. 10” | 116 hrs. | +15 hrs. 37 min. |
| Bucharest | 59 min. | 27 min. 10” | 112 hrs. | +3 hrs. 14 min. |
| Bengaluru | 57 min. | 26 min. 20” | 109 hrs. | +0 hrs. 48 min. |
Dublin is the city where commuters lose the most time in rush-hour traffic jams.
A motorist spends an average of 1h16 in his or her car to make a typical 10-kilometre journey twice a day during the morning and evening rush hours – but more than 41 minutes of this daily round trip is due to traffic jams. Those who make this journey every day lose 158 hours in traffic jams.
The situation is particularly bad in 2023, with almost 13 hours more than in 2022.
Impact of congestion on fuel price
Ranking: Cities with highest cost of driving at rush hours
Average annual fuel cost spent for a 10-kilometer daily round trip driven at morning & evening peak hours (total 20 km/day), in minutes/seconds.
| City center (5km radius) | Petrol car | Diesel car | |||||
| Annual
fuel cost |
Due to
traffic |
Annual
fuel cost |
Due to
traffic |
||||
| Hong-Kong | 994 € | 180 € | 746 € | 120 € | |||
| Paris | 934 € | 288 € | 800 € | 229 € | |||
| London | 886 € | 226 € | 783 € | 190 € | |||
| Zurich | 804 € | 156 € | 768 € | 134 € | |||
| Athens | 803 € | 220 € | 615 € | 153 € | |||
Impact of congestion on CO2 emissions
Ranking: Cities with the highest CO2 emissions per car at rush hour
Average annual CO2 emissions based on a 10-kilometer daily round trip driven at morning & evening peak hours (total 20 km/day), in kg of CO2.
| City center (5km radius) | Petrol car | Diesel car | ||
| Annual CO²
emitted |
Due to traffic | Annual CO²
emitted |
Due to traffic | |
| London | 1155 kg | 295 kg | 1086 kg | 264 kg |
| Paris | 1115 kg | 344 kg | 1076 kg | 308 kg |
| Manila | 1053 kg | 295 kg | 999 kg | 260 kg |
| Bucharest | 1046 kg | 308 kg | 990 kg | 264 kg |
| Ankara | 1036 kg | 204 kg | 1061 kg | 162 kg |
Major Traffic Trends Shaping Cities Globally in 2023
- London’s city center was the slowest to drive through in 2023, with an average speed of 16 km/h.
- Dublin is the most congested city at peak times in 2023, with daily commuters having lost 158 hours (about 6 and a half days) to traffic*.
- In 2023, average speed decreased in 228 of the 387 cities analyzed, compared to
- Get the full ranking and interactive report at com/Traffic-Index
