How city traffic has slowed to a crawl: London is 5mph

Traffic in central London has slowed to an average speed of little more than 5 miles an hour, a report shows.

Speeds have come down in nine of ten cities in a major study – only Bradford showed an increase. Experts blame the slowdown on increased traffic, more cycle and bus lanes and expanded pedestrian zones.

The measures are part of an attempt by councils to cut air pollution and discourage driving. London was the slowest city with vehicles within one mile of the centre moving at an average speed of 5.13mph this year compared with 6.35mph in the same three-month period last year.

In Glasgow’s centre average speeds fell from 8.56mph to 6.82mph and in Manchester from 8.14mph to 6.57mph. Bradford’s traffic nudged up from 9.48mph to 10.08mph, according to the analysis by In-Car Cleverness.

The telematics firm examined data on nearly 400,000 journeys and found that speeds had also slowed in the areas up to five miles from the city centre in Birmingham, London and Manchester. However traffic in this zone was moving faster this year in Glasgow, Bradford, Leeds and Liverpool than it had in 2016. Latest figures from the Department of Transport show traffic volumes have reached record levels.

The country’s drivers notched up 324.3billion vehicle miles in the year to March – up 1.7 per cent from the previous year and 3.2 per cent higher than the pre-recession peak in the 12 months ending September 2007.

The measures are part of an attempt by councils to cut air pollution and discourage driving

According to the ministry’s figures, 68 per cent of workers drive as part of their commute, potentially wasting hours of their lives in traffic.

Paul O’Dowd, sales manager at In-Car Cleverness, said: ‘The figures paint a stark picture of how everyday commuters, drivers and even businesses are struggling to get around or operate in some of the biggest hubs in the UK.

‘The widespread reduction of average speeds in city centres is surprising and is likely the result of a few factors.

‘Overall traffic volumes are higher and this increase will be most noticeable in urban areas. As well as more traffic on the roads, major cities are increasingly introducing tighter speed restrictions while adopting more bus lanes, as well as cycling and pedestrian infrastructure.’