Moscow traffic rated worst in world

Moscow traffic is rated the world’s worst by Dutch GPS manufacturer TomTom, which has issued its annual congestion report. Slow streets prolong an average ride by more than a half, thus stealing at least five days from the life of a Moscow driver.

Istanbul takes a 'prideful' second spot on the list, with its traffic just a trifle less congested. Poland’s Warsaw comes third.

The Russian capital has topped the 2012 Congestion index, revealing that the city traffic makes an average journey 66 per cent longer than when the traffic is flowing freely. The morning rush hour figure goes as high as 106 per cent, in the evening it hikes up to 138 per cent.

On average, a Moscow driver spent 127 hours in traffic last year, that's not counting the normal time needed to get from A to B. The busiest traffic day was November 29, when Moscow streets were nearly paralyzed by heavy snowfall.

Wednesdays are the busiest weekdays traffic-wise in the Russian capital, TomTom's index shows. The smoothest ride awaits those traveling on Monday mornings and Friday nights.

TomTom's Congestion Index measures traffic congestion in 161 cities across five continents and compares it to congestion levels in the previous year. It is believed to be the world's most accurate barometer of congestion in urban areas.

The results are based on real travel time data captured by vehicles driving the entire road network.

“The TomTom Congestion Index clearly shows that traffic in our major metropolitan cities is on the rise," TomTom’s Asia Pacific VP, Chris Kearney said in a statement. "At TomTom we’re constantly working to help governments and road authorities make more informed decisions about tackling the issue of traffic congestion and the Index aims to do just that.”

Los Angeles, Paris, Sydney and Rome also made it to the top 10 of 'traffic horror' venues.

In 2011 Warsaw took the top spot for road congestion, in 2010 it was Brussels.