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America's Worst Traffic


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America's Worst Traffic Traps

Robert Malone, 06.11.07, 6:30 PM ET

They have nicknames: "Hillside Strangler," "Mixing Bowl," "Spaghetti Junction" and "Orange Crush."

They drive commuters crazy. They stall commerce. They waste fuel uselessly. And fixing them? Nothing doing. When you're talking about America's worst traffic traps--the highway bottlenecks that cause the most hours of delay per year--there's been little to do but sit on someone's bumper and complain.

Could it be changing? Last week, nine of America

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How can congestion at the I-10/610 junction be "improved" if the section just due west of it is still under construction? The bottlenecking on the off ramp of 610 north to 10 west is due primarily to the fact that the lanes merge from two to one, as they've not yet finished construction on those lanes as it heads towards the Silber exit.

Nevertheless, as it stands now, the backup is pretty bad.

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How can congestion at the I-10/610 junction be "improved" if the section just due west of it is still under construction?

the fix isn't instantaneous. the interchange is part of the i-10 expansion. at least a fix is underway already.

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I know that interchange gets bad, but as we've all said, it's under construction, and the congestion there pales in comparison to 610 West Loop at 59 Southwest. Talk about a sick interchange. Even after the improvements they made recently it is a nightmare.

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Not that its great now, but the survey was probably done while that interchange was under construction or in its old configuration.

I dont drive that interchange on a daily basis, but my assumption is that it has been improved in the past 12 months now that contruction is finished.

Well, if they mean the interchange at 610 @ 59 it is a mess ... still. Seems like you can zip past the Galleria, Uptown, etc., but when you want to get on 59 (going east or west) traffic comes to a complete stop.

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  • 1 month later...
Not that its great now, but the survey was probably done while that interchange was under construction or in its old configuration.

I dont drive that interchange on a daily basis, but my assumption is that it has been improved in the past 12 months now that contruction is finished.

I've never seen a survey of the "best" traffic areas. That's because there are not any. 95% of all drivers are rude and crazy. Nobody wants to wait or slow down for anything. Even in rural areas you'll get run over. Stay in a big city like Houston. You'll acquire experience, skill, and patience.

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Honestly, I have seen worse traffic. Try driving from Washington to Baltimore along the BW Parkway or even I95 at rush hour ... nightmarish.

By comparison, Houston's traffic is more along the lines of 'annoying'. Like "why won't these fools drive faster?!?!" than just outright parking-lottish. At it's worse I45 N slows down, but it never completely stops. Or at least I have not experienced that here.

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