Bay Area Contains Some Of Nation's Worst Traffic Bottlenecks
(KPIX 5) -- Two of the country's worst traffic bottlenecks are right here in the Bay Area and it's costing the economy millions of dollars.
A report released Monday morning breaks down how many work hours and gallons of gas are being wasted as a result.
The report from the American Highway Users Alliance identifies the 50 worst bottlenecks in the country.
Chicago is number 1 on the list with a 12-mile backup at the Kennedy Expressway. However the Los Angeles region has six of the top 10 worst bottlenecks.
Number 12 is Eastbound I-80 in San Francisco between 101 and the Bay Bridge. Number 16 is Eastbound I-80 between the 580 Interchange and Ashby Avenue in Berkeley.
Each of these bottlenecks lasts about two miles and causes an annual delay of about two million hours and wastes between 700 and 800 million gallons of gas.
But there is hope, according to the group.
By fixing the top 30 bottlenecks over 20 years, we could:
- Save $39 billion due to lost time
- Save 830 million gallons of fuel
- Reduce over 17 billion pounds of greenhouse gas emissions
- Prevent 211,000 vehicle crashes
But the solutions like construction of new roadways or upgrading what's already in place are time-consuming and costly.
To see American Highway Users Alliance's full list, visit Highways.org.
