When is the best time to leave for work and best time to head home ?

As we once again stare at the car in front of us admiring the cute family stickers stuck on the back window, we tend to wonder where the term “rush hour” comes from as we are unable to rush anywhere. Trying to beat the traffic by leaving early or late we discover that thousands of other people have the same idea which results in the the morning and afternoon commute simple extends.

As we mutter yet another curse as the taxi wizzes past in the emergency lane,  take some comfort in the fact that no matter how bad your traffic is, there are cities around the world where traffic is much worse !

According to the TomTom annual Traffic Index highlighting the impact of traffic congestion from 218 cities in 36 countries and for the first time includes traffic information for China, Romania, Taiwan, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Slovakia, and United Arab Emirates. The global trend reveals that in 2014, the average commuter spent an extra 100 hours a year travelling during rush hour.

In South Africa the data shows that the morning commute is the most congested and Monday morning being the worst time to travel.

Interesting facts include data for:

Cape Town, which is ranked globally at number 55, shows that the morning commute is the worst on a Monday  adding 75% to the commute time, however the rest of the week doesn’t fare much better as Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday add 72% to commute time and only on Thursday does it add 70%. The worst evening commute is on a Friday which adds 60% to the commute which is only  fractional better than the rest of the week.

Johannesburg is listed at 77  globally showing that the morning travel on a Monday add 66% to commuting time compared to Friday which adds 54%. The evening commute is virtually the same throughout the week  adding around 54% to the commute time.

“TomTom’s mission is to reduce traffic congestion for everyone,” says Carey Dodd, Marketing Manager for TomTom SA. “Road authorities and local governments can use TomTom’s traffic data to better manage traffic flow during the rush hour. We can help businesses plan smarter working hours to help their employees avoid travelling during rush hour. And we give drivers the real-time traffic information and smart routing they need to avoid congested roads and get there faster.”

The number one ranked city is Istanbul where the Monday morning commute adds 87% to the journey and the rest of the week commute fluctuates between 68% on and 75%. However the journey heading home at night is just ridiculous where on a Monday and Tuesday evening can add 106% to your journey which climbs to 116% on a Friday.

To check out other countries and cities check out www.tomtom.com/trafficindex