Auckland has officially claimed the title of most congested city in Australasia.
According to a Boston Consulting report, commissioned by Uber, Auckland commuters' rush hour travel takes 48 percent longer than it does at other times.
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That's higher than any other Australian city, though things are almost as bad in Sydney which comes in at second place with a 47 percent surge in travel time.
Our love for driving seems to be the problem with 90 percent of Aucklanders travelling in cars, compared to just 5 percent on public transport and five percent in taxis or ridesharing.
"Kiwis love their own cars, and we actually find that 54 percent of Aucklanders own more than one car," Nicky Preston, head of communications at Uber, told Newshub.
As the population grows and more cars hit the road, congestion problems are only likely to increase.
According to Government modelling, by 2049, 40 percent more of Auckland's roads will be severely congested at peak times if no action is taken.
That's why Auckland Transport is taking action to improve public transport in the region.
"I think there's been an historic lack of investment in public transport. We're still trying to catch up with a lot of Australian cities in the levels of investment," Auckland Transport's Mark Lambert says.
"We all know congestion is pretty bad in Auckland and it has been getting worse, we've been working on a lot of things, particularly public transport improvements."
But Auckland Transport's own figures show that it's still quicker to get to the CBD by car during the morning rush-hour from at least half of the six centres it monitors.
The report suggests the promotion of other ideas like car-pooling and e-scooters as part of the solution.
"Getting out of that private vehicle is how we can really help congestion," Ms Preston suggests.
However, until Aucklanders are convinced to ditch their cars, the traffic troubles will only continue.
Newshub.
