These are the US cities with the worst traffic

The next time you find yourself stuck in traffic, and seconds from losing your mind, just know — you’re not alone.

INRIX, Inc. released its 2015 Traffic Scorecard on Tuesday, ranking the top U.S. cities with the worst traffic.

The cities are rated based on the average time wasted per commuter, and cities such as Los Angeles, Washington D.C., San Francisco, Houston, New York and Seattle are ranked as the most congested, where commuters spent a total of 8 billion hours stuck in traffic last year.

According to INRIX, the data revealed by the report allows governments and agencies both in the United States and Europe to measure progress in improving urban mobility, and it allows officials to target challenges.

“INRIX partners with more than 200 governments and agencies worldwide, providing them with the industry’s most accurate mobility data and analytics to tackle transportation challenges and enhance intelligent movement,” said Bryan Mistele, President and CEO of INRIX. “The 2015 Traffic Scorecard is our response to their need for a quantifiable benchmark to track the impact of their spending on smart city initiatives.”

Based on the report, as cities continue to see growth in the economy and population, increase in employment rates and decline in gas prices, congestion continues to grow because there are more drivers on the road.

For cities that have seen the most economic improvement in the past year — such as New York and Boston — there are higher risks for consequences related to worsened traffic conditions. Some of these consequences include reduced productivity, higher emissions and increased stress levels.

The top 10 cities in the country with the worse traffic ranked in terms of average time wasted per commuter in 2015 were:

1. Los Angeles, CA – 81 hours

2. Washington, DC – 75 hours

3. San Francisco, CA – 75 hours

4. Houston, TX – 74 hours

5. New York, NY – 73 hours

6. Seattle, WA – 66 hours

7. Boston, MA – 64 hours

8. Chicago, IL – 60 hours

9. Atlanta, GA – 59 hours

10. Honolulu, HI – 49 hours

The United States makes up 50 percent of the top 10 metros with the worst traffic congestion. London tops the list of “gridlock-plagued cities” with 101 hours of delays per commuter, followed by Los Angeles with 81 hours, Washington D.C. with 75 hours, San Francisco with 75 hours, Houston with 74 hours, New York with 73 hours, Stuttgart with 73 hours, Antwerp with 71 hours, Cologne with 71 hours and Brussels with 70 hours of delays per commuter.

The U.S. also leads the list of countries with the most hours wasted in traffic—with an average of close to 50 hours per commuter in 2015. Countries like Belgium, with 44 hours wasted in traffic, and the Netherlands, with 39 hours wasted, follow right behind.

INRIX added that big cities need to apply the data to create “intelligent transportation systems” that will help solve the issue of urban mobility. The data from the report can allow city planners and engineers to make decisions on where to spend to cause the bigger impacts.

“When working with limited budgets to manage transportation systems, using data-based performance metrics can make a major difference in the outcomes of planning and implementing new infrastructure,” the report said.