U.S.

Gridlock Guide USA

By CBSNews.com staff CBSNews.com staff

November 23, 1999 / 5:58 PM EST / CBS

Drivers are justified in calling the junction where the San Diego and Santa Monica freeways meet in Los Angeles "commuter hell," CBS News Correspondent Jerry Bowen reports.

The spot where Interstate 405 meets I-10 hosts some of the worst traffic congestion in the United States, and drivers there spend an average 20 minutes daily simply not moving.

"Whew! They need to make some big changes to the 405 man," exclaims one man who uses that highway. "Traffic all day long, every day. No matter what time you're on there. It's always traffic."

Top 10 U.S. Highway Bottlenecks

1. Los Angeles, Interstate 405 at I-10
2. Houston, U.S. 59
at I-610
3. Seattle, I-5 at I-90
4. Boston, I-93 Central Artery downtown at U.S. 1
5. Washington/Maryland, I-495 at I-270
6. Washington/Virginia, I-95 at I-495 and I-395
7. Los Angeles, U.S. 101 Ventura Freeway at I-405
8. Los Angeles, State Route 55 Newport Freeway at State Route 22
9. Los Angeles, I-10 Santa Monica Freeway at I-5
10. Albuquerque, I-40 at I-25

Source: American Highway Users Alliance.

According to a private study released by the American Highway Users Alliance on Tuesday, Los Angeles is home to four of the nation's top ten bottlenecks -- but there's plenty of misery to spare.

Also cited were Chicago's "Hillside Strangler," where three interstates converge to choke traffic; the "mixing bowl" south of Washington, where delays average 12 minutes; and Houston, where the beltway and southwest freeways make for a very slow Texas two-step. In all, nearly 170 congested roadways nationwide are in need of relief.

According to the Alliance's Bill Fay, "The benefits of fixing them are far greater than ever imagined. 290,000 less crashes. Of those, 1,100 less fatalities. 140,000 less injuries, and 19 minutes knocked off of the average delay."

The gridlock solution will not be easy or cheap. Automakers want more roads, and environmentalists seek more mass transit. Meanwhile, drivers are just looking for a break:

And if nothing is done, the traffic experts say the national bottleneck will only get worse: present traffic delays will double in just 20 years.