Insights on how traffic woes impact drivers

DRIVERS have been feeling the pain of traffic congestion across Cape Town, and have been left frustrated with very few avenues to direct that frustration.

- THEOLIN TEMBO

Through casual conversation, anecdotal evidence, and global research, it is clear the impact Cape Town traffic has on the lives of people and time they lose as a result.

Back in January, the 2024 INRIX Global Traffic Scorecard revealed Cape Town to be the ninth most congested city in the world, and that traffic was 13% worse than the previous year.

The year before that, Cape Town was in the same position on the same index.

The INRIX survey revealed that Capetonians, on average, experience a delay of 94 hours per year, versus the time they would have spent if they were driving during quieter, off-peak periods.

This “delay” was 83 hours in 2023.

Commute times are calculated by looking exclusively at the time it takes to get to and from major employment centers within an urban area from surrounding commuting neighbourhoods, and its newest methodology includes accurate estimates of commuting distances using actual, observed trips.