Drivers traveling through the Denver metro last year were stuck in traffic jams for an average of 37 hours — 16% more than in 2022, but 11% fewer delays than before the pandemic — and traffic jams are increasingly occurring around noon rather than only during rush hour, according to a global study. latest analysis from transportation data company.
The average speed of vehicles heading toward downtown Denver remains about 14 miles per hour, faster than the 11 miles per hour in New York City and Chicago. But cycling where unobstructed routes are available can be faster. And then the Regional Transportation Districts public transport functions as intended; riding a bus or train can be faster than driving a car.
The analysis was conducted by Seattle-based company INRIX. The Numbers reflect a changed methodology, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, that company officials say will include data from more commute routes to more accurately reflect urban mobility.
The analysts compare data from 946 cities in 37 countries. In the United States, Denver ranks 22nd in traffic delays.
The increase here — up from 32 hours in 2022 and down from about 41 hours in 2019 — matches similar increases in major U.S. cities, where an average of 42 hours per year are lost to traffic, driving U.S. economy is estimated to cost $70 billion.
Drivers in metro Denver and other cities since 2020 have experienced significantly more traffic congestion during the afternoon — between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. — in addition to the traditional morning and evening rush hours, INRIX senior analyst Bob Pishue said in an interview — a trend attributed to to the post-pandemic rise of hybrid work arrangements.
“The number of traffic delays in Denver is still lower than it was a few years ago, and you might be better off now. But traffic congestion, barring a massive economic recession, still seems to be on the rise. That is the general trend and that is what we expect in the near future,” Pishue said.
Drivers in Metro Denver spend nearly a workweek per year navigating traffic, and the INRIX analysis estimates that the delays cost metro Denver $831 million per year and individual drivers $640.
Colorado Department of Transportation officials and regional planners have struggled for years to control traffic, encourage the expansion of public transportation and build more high-density housing concentrated around bus and train hubs for workers so that residents have to drive less. The highway widening in the core of the Denver metro will cost $1.6 billion T-REX project and the construction of arterial roads such as Peña Boulevard to allow for follow-up developments are no longer seen as a solution.
Planners expect more heavy traffic on the road.
“The biggest driver of future congestion will be population growth. It’s slowing down compared to the last 30 years, but we estimate there will be roughly 1 million more people in the next 30 years.” Denver Regional Council of Governments said Robert Spotts, program manager for mobility analytics.
“The capacity of the road systems will not keep pace. Will people continue to have the same desire to travel as much, to go to so many places, even in these busy conditions? Our models say yes. That will result in much more demand, compared to the capacity we have, and significantly more congestion.”
Stuck in traffic for hours means less time for other things.
“It means lost productive time, lower quality of life, excessive CO2 emissions from oil and gas, reduced air quality and increased frustration,” Pishue said. “It also means vans and semi-trucks spend longer in traffic, increasing the cost of goods sold. And then there is the health aspect: adding stress. Maybe you can’t catch your child’s ball game. Maybe you miss a work meeting. You may not be able to get to your doctor’s appointment on time.”
Drivers adapt. Some turn to book recordings, podcasts and language study. This has led to increasing concerns about distracted driving, a factor in Colorado near-record traffic fatalities. Tempers also flare.
If traffic congestion increases, “drivers’ frustrations will increase,” Pishue said. “That can lead to reckless behavior.”
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