Edinburgh has been crowned the UK’s ‘capital of congestion’ for the third year running after research revealed motorists in the city spend more than a week stuck in traffic every year.
Drivers found themselves gridlocked for an average of 172 hours during 2019 - a shade over seven days.
The research, carried out by SatNav manufacturer TomTom, ranked Edinburgh ahead of London, Brighton and Hove and Hull for levels of congestion in the city centre.
READ MORE: Thousands back bid to take Glasgow buses into public ownership
Commuters experienced a 41 per cent increase in travel time as a result of the traffic conditions, with the worst rush hour journey recorded between 5pm and 6pm on a Wednesday.
It means the capital is Europe’s fourth most congested ‘small city,’ defined as those with a population of less than 800,000, behind Lodz, Krakow and Poznan in Poland.
Glasgow recorded a one per cent rise in congestion levels, but still ranked well behind Edinburgh.
Motorists on the other side of the M8 were only stationary for an average of four days and 23 hours on city roads, with traffic causing a 25 per cent rise in travel times.
Both cities have introduced 20 mph hour zones on roads over the past few years.
READ MORE: Glasgow approves 20mph speed limit rollout on most city roads
Stephanie Leonard, UK Traffic Advisor at TomTom, said: “Congestion remains a perennial problem for Edinburgh. Yet, despite being a modern city built on Medieval foundations, city planners can look to Glasgow for lessons in how public transport programmes and road developments can have a transformative impact.
“It’s time for traffic to change. In time, the rise of autonomous vehicles and car-sharing services will help alleviate congestion across the country."
She added: "However, policymakers can make real improvements now by using all the tools available to them to analyse traffic levels and impacts, so they can make better infrastructural decisions.”
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