Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Streetsblog USA home
Log In
Cars

The “Worst Cities for Driving” Include a Lot of America’s Best Cities

Don't you just hate going to a really lively city with a pulsing street life? Where there's a lot going on and people can walk from one place to the next? You might if you're trying to drive there. And once again, NerdWallet has delivered the windshield perspective on America's cities.

Isn't Seattle such a horrible place? I mean, where would you park here? Photo: ##http://www.city-data.com/forum/city-vs-city/1409519-city-most-downtown-foot-traffic-20.html##City-Data##
Isn't Seattle such a horrible place? I mean, where would you park here? Photo: City-Data
Isn't Seattle such a horrible place? I mean, where would you park here? Photo: ##http://www.city-data.com/forum/city-vs-city/1409519-city-most-downtown-foot-traffic-20.html##City-Data##

The pop-finance website's new ranking of the worst cities to drive in includes, predictably, some of the country's best cities to walk, bike, take transit, or otherwise be in.

So, your worst cities? The real hellholes for drivers? They are:

    1. New York
    2. Detroit
    3. San Francisco
    4. Chicago
    5. Washington, DC
    6. Seattle
    7. Boston
    8. Miami
    9. Honolulu
    10. Oakland

Population density counted heavily against a city in the ranking, because it makes car ownership expensive and the streets more congested -- not to mention more chaotic to drive in because you're "weaving though trolleys, cab drivers, pedestrians and cyclists," as NerdWallet puts it.

Also factored in to a city's rank are the cost of gas and insurance (high insurance costs landed Detroit near the top) and hours of motorist delay, measured exactly the same way the Texas Transportation Institute measures it. Oh, and NerdWallet also holds it against a city if it has seasons, with precipitation.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

Friday Video: The Utopia of London’s Low-Traffic Neighborhoods

Streetsfilms follows an urban planner around the “low-traffic neighborhood” of St. Peter’s in the London borough of Islington.

November 7, 2025

Friday’s Headlines Got Lucky

Crash data doesn't nearly capture the near misses cyclists have to endure.

November 7, 2025

San Diego Is Latest California City to Welcome Waymo

The Alphabet-owned company announced plans to begin mapping city streets and launching limited operations sometime next year — but whether that move will help advance San Diego’s safety and climate goals remains to be seen.

November 6, 2025

Talking Headways Podcast: Why Are We Going Backwards?

A very special discussion about why America keeps building highways, how President Trump is targeting transit and how we can all get a better federal transportation bill if we want it.

November 6, 2025

Thursday’s Headlines Won Big

It was a good day for transit on Election Day Tuesday.

November 6, 2025

Transit Wins Big Again In Local Elections Across America

Several candidates who ran on ambitious transportation reform platforms won at the ballot box on Tuesday — but even more communities said yes to supporting transit directly.

November 6, 2025
See all posts