Stuck in traffic

The Texas Department of Transportation on Thursday released its annual list of the 100-most-congested roads and highways in Texas and Austin bagged 10% of the list. It is no surprise that IH35 - right through the heart of our fair city - is close to the top of the list in 4th position.

All the other major thoroughfares in town made the list too; US 290, Mopac, US 183, South and North Lamar, Loop 360 and Parmer lane, among others. It is comforting to know that the roads I travel daily have been recognized as among the most congested in the State. The rankings are based on "annual hours of delay per mile" and if you put a dollar value on the time lost, IH35 costs Austin motorists $133.13 million dollars a year.

But Austin is actually in good shape, compared to Dallas and Houston. The Woodall Rodgers Freeway, just north of downtown Dallas leads the pack. In fact, Dallas has the top 3 offenders on the list and the time lost for all three of them comes to $276 million dollars a year.  Houston doesn't weigh in until #6 with US 59, but it makes up for it by claiming more than 1/3 of the spots on the list.  I drove down to Houston a few years back late on a Sunday evening and got stuck in traffic on US 59 at 11:00 PM at night.

But there is more. Another survey, this one by AllState Insurance, says Austin drivers have improved their ranking for best drivers in the country - from 170th (out of 200) to 150th. That's right, by measuring collisions in 200 cities across the nation, we are the 150th best drivers on the list!  That's right, only 50 other cities have worse drivers than Austin, including, Dallas and Houston. The best? Fort Collins, CO. The worst? Washington DC

You gotta love this town.