Davao City 8th, Manila 14th, Caloocan 26th worst in TomTom Traffic Index

Davao City ranked eighth, Manila 14th, and Caloocan 26th in “slowest cities” among 500 areas in the world, according to navigation technology firm TomTom’s 2024 Traffic Index.

In Davao City, the report said the average travel time per 10 kilometers is 32 minutes and 59 seconds. A total of 136 hours were lost per year in the city.

Davao City also ranked third for congestion with a congestion level of 49%.

The average travel time per 10 kilometers in Manila is 32 minutes and 10 seconds. A total of 127 hours were lost per year during rush hours.

Manila ranked 27th for congestion with a congestion level of 42%.

Meanwhile, the average travel time per 10 kilometers in Caloocan is 30 minutes and 44 seconds. A total of 111 hours per year were lost during rush hour.

Caloocan ranked 29th in congestion with a congestion level of 41%.

The TomTom Traffic Index is based on floating car data (FCD). TomTom collects this data from various sources to create traffic services for its clients and customers, the firm said on its website.

“In the Traffic Index, we use a representative sample of this data, spanning 737 billion km, to assess and show how traffic evolved in cities around the globe throughout 2024,” TomTom said.

The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) on Thursday pointed out that the agency is not aware of the methodology used to assess the travel speed in TomTom’s report.

“Meron tayong sariling survey or monitoring kung saan mas mabilis pa. As compared sa datos ng TomTom, mas mabilis yung travel speed na mamonitor natin internally dito sa MMDA,” MMDA chairperson Romando Artes said in a press conference.

(We have our own survey or monitoring which yielded a faster travel time. As compared to the TomTom data, the travel speed that we monitor internally here at MMDA is faster.)

“Kung ang masusunod ay yung ating internal monitoring ay mas maganda sana yung ranking natin. Pero just the same, from No. 1 sa kanila, sa Tomtom, to No.14, ibig sabihin may improvement,” he added.

(If our internal monitoring will be the basis, our ranking would be better. But just the same, from No. 1 to No.14 in TomTom’s study, it means there is an improvement.)

In its 2023 study, TomTom reported that Metro Manila had the slowest travel time among 387 metropolitan areas in 55 countries.

It would take 25 minutes and 30 seconds to drive a vehicle 10 kilometers in the metro area around Manila, according to the 2023 report.—LDF, GMA Integrated News