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

Report: Traffic Injuries Increase Near Amazon Last-Mile Warehouses

Injuries are increasing near last-mile warehouses and advocates want to change the model for more accountability.

November 18, 2025

Breaking: Trump Admin Seeks To Decimate Federal Transit Funding

"When you're talking about taking away money from transit, your proposal is flawed from the get-go," said one expert.

November 18, 2025

Tuesday’s Headlines Lost the Battle but Won the War

A Politico long read details how bureaucracy slowed down but couldn't stop the conversion to EVs.

November 18, 2025

Report: Biden Infrastructure Bill Spurred Increase in State and Local Highway Spending

The Urban Institute found an overall increase in capital investment in ground transportation — mostly on highways — and flat investment in public transit.

November 17, 2025

Monday’s Headlines Remember

Fifty U.S. cities and others around the globe memorialized the victims of traffic violence on Sunday.

November 17, 2025

Transportation Politics Is Inherently Radical

And we need to embrace that if we want to win.

November 17, 2025
See all posts