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7. San Jose

7. San Jose
Congestion score: 17.6 (tied for 7th highest)
Population density: 685.7 people per sq. mile (26th highest)
Average commute time: 24.8 minutes (65th highest)
Percentage driving to work: 86.7% (61st lowest)

Only one stretch of road in the San Jose area ranked in the top 100 most congested in the nation in 2012. Despite this, overall congestion in the area was among the nation’s worst last year, receiving an INRIX index a score of 17.6. Additionally, the San Jose area’s score actually worsened in 2012 compared with 2011, even as the nationwide congestion score improved from 8.4 to 6.6. San Jose and adjacent Silicon Valley residents were roughly as likely as most Americans to drive to work, according to Census figures.

The 10 U.S. cities with the worst traffic

Last year, the average American driver wasted 38 hours sitting in

traffic. While the occasional traffic jam inconveniences most drivers,

some unlucky people live in the nation’s most congested cities. To determine the 10 cities with the

worst traffic, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed figures published by INRIX, a

traffic information and services group. The INRIX scorecard assigns an

index score for the 100 largest metropolitan statistical areas, and

individual road segments within those areas. Scores are functions of the

percentage difference between road segments’ uncongested (or “free

flow”) travel time and the calculated travel time on the roads during

peak hours. 24/7 Wall St. also reviewed population density from the 2010

Census, as well as travel time and commuting methods for each metro

area from the Census Bureau’s 2011 American Community Survey. All data

used were the most recent available. These are the 10 cities with the

worst traffic.