Philadelphia Ranked As One Of The Most Challenging Cities For Holiday Travel
The remaining weeks of the year can be a lot of fun as we hit the holidays. It also can be frustrating dealing with the massive amounts of traffic. So, how does Philadelphia fare in terms of ranking the worst cities for holiday traffic and travel in the country?
There are a few different factors to look at here. Obviously this Thanksgiving week serves as one of the highest volume traffic time periods of the year. This is especially true the two days before Thursday and the Sunday after, with friends and family traveling to host sites. In addition, these are the typical days where colleges get out for their holiday break.
In a recent feature by U.S. News and World Report, Philadelphia ranked as one of the worst cities in America for traffic. Furthermore, they state Philly was one of five cities to be named among the ten worst cities in the entire world for traffic. The metric examined here was based around “congestion” in these cities.
Philadelphia ranked fourth, only behind Chicago, Boston, and New York. This was largely due to the recorded delay hours and high costs per driver.
Worst Cities For Holiday Travel
Forbes narrowed down traffic concerns in America by focusing on the holiday months. “Historically, visitors to certain cities have faced a greater risk of air travel disruptions, traffic congestion, car accidents, and inflated hotel prices during the holiday season,” they said when explaining the large percentage of Americans that travel between Thanksgiving and mid-January.
However, the news for Philadelphia here is not terrible as it is not in Forbes’ top ten worst cities for holiday travel. Memphis, Los Angeles, Jacksonville, New York, and Tucson rounded out their top five. Nonetheless, Philly did not escape this conversation unscathed. Forbes has Philadelphia as the 19th worst city for holiday travel, specifically.
“17.80% of flights out of Philadelphia were delayed, canceled or diverted during the holiday season between 2018 and 2022,” Forbes said. To construct this ranking, Forbes specifically analyzes three categories that included overall driving, air travel, and city experience in the greater metro areas.
If you will be traveling in or out of the greater Philadelphia area this holiday season and bracing for traffic, it is suggested to aim for off-peak hours as much as possible.
