Skip to main content

Brussels still the most congested city in Europe

The results of the latest traffic study from TomTom are in, revealing some of the most congested hotspots in Europe. Brussels is still topping the chart as the most congested city in Europe and congestion in the Belgian Capital is getting worse, showing a 1.2% increase in traffic since 2010.
April 20, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
RSSThe results of the latest traffic study from 1692 TomTom are in, revealing some of the most congested hotspots in Europe. Brussels is still topping the chart as the most congested city in Europe and congestion in the Belgian Capital is getting worse, showing a 1.2% increase in traffic since 2010.

The study also brings gloomy traffic news for the UK. Bustling capital city London - in spite of a 0.2% decrease in traffic - climbs up the rankings to take third place in the most congested city list, while Edinburgh and Manchester both feature in the top ten. In fact, a total of 16 UK cities feature in the top 50 - making the UK undoubtedly 2011's most gridlocked European country.

But it’s not all bad news. Six of the continent’s most congested cities have significantly reduced traffic since 2010. Polish city Wroclaw has seen a 2.6% drop, moving it down to fourth place out of 50. Meanwhile, Toulouse in France has reduced congestion by an impressive 1.9%, making it fifth in the rankings with 33% of roads congested in the city.

In comparison, the German city of Cologne sits at the bottom of the top 50; only 18.9% of its roads are congested. But Germany still features six times in the overall list.

The data shows that you'll have the most stress-free trip in Spain, Switzerland, Norway, Hungary, Ireland or the Czech Republic, each of which has only one city in the top 50.

The most positive change of all has been made by Ireland. While Belfast still sits at number 12, there has been a reduction of 2% in traffic congestion over the last year. And Dublin has reduced its traffic by a staggering 9.7% since 2010 – although at 24.2%, it's still got some way to go to beat traffic-efficient Cologne.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Belfast and Bristol ‘most congested cities in UK’
    April 5, 2013
    According to the 2012 Congestion Index from satellite navigation specialists TomTom, motorists in Bristol and Belfast now face the slowest moving traffic in Britain. Even London’s infamous rush hour is less congested than peak-time jams in cities like Manchester and Nottingham, the annual global traffic figures found. The index shows that the average journey for drivers in Belfast takes 32.1 per cent longer than it would do if traffic moved freely, while in Bristol, journeys take 31 per cent longer. Londo
  • Congestion up globally says TomTom
    March 23, 2016
    According to TomTom’s latest Traffic Index, traffic congestion has increased 13 per cent globally since 2008. But there are big differences between continents; while North America’s traffic congestion has jumped by 17 per cent, Europe has risen just two per cent. TomTom believe the contrasts probably are driven by economic growth in North America and financial troubles in the many parts of Europe. In particular, some countries have recorded a marked drop in traffic over the past eight years, including It
  • Vulnerable road users face safety problems
    May 18, 2012
    Concern is growing in Europe over the safety standards for vulnerable road users such as pedestrians, cyclists and powered two wheeler riders. A total of 169,000 pedestrians, cyclists and users of powered two-wheeled vehicles (PTW) have been killed on European roads since 2001; 15,300 of them in 2009. The figures have been published in the new Road Safety Performance Index (PIN) report and reveal a decrease in the number of deaths by 34% for pedestrians and cyclists, and just 18% for PTW riders compared to
  • Congestion index for major European cities
    July 11, 2012
    TomTom has launched its first quarterly Congestion Index that identifies and analyses traffic congestion in major cities across Europe. The report, initially covering 31 cities, finds Warsaw the most congested city in Europe. On average, journey times in Warsaw are 42 per cent longer than when traffic in the city is flowing freely and 89 per cent longer during morning rush hour.