New Yorkers to Face Worst Labor Day Traffic Nationwide

Bridgeport, third-worst city, will also see significant holiday weekend congestion

NEW YORK--Aug. 28, 2012: Every Labor Day, millions of Americans hit the road for one "last" summer weekend, and 2012 will be no different according to INRIX, the leading provider of traffic information. Through in-depth analysis of recent traffic patterns in New York City, INRIX predicts that New York, the fourth-most congested city in the U.S. and Bridgeport, CT, the fifth-most congested city,(1) will take the first and third spots, respectively, for the worst cities for weekend road-trippers.

"Between Bridgeport being a 'gateway' between New England and the Mid-Atlantic, and recent trends and increases in consumer spending indicating that travelers will not fear gas prices, we're predicting major delays as travelers leave town for Labor Day," said Jim Bak, INRIX Director of Community Relations. "Best bet is to leave before lunchtime or wait for the evening, if you're planning to get out on Friday. Travelers thinking they'll avoid traffic by waiting for Saturday to depart will have better luck if they get on the road right after breakfast."

Key insights from INRIX's New York metro area research include:

• Traffic will start to build in New York City at lunchtime on Friday, August 31, and will continue to get worse into the evening, peaking between 4 and 5 p.m., with traffic in Bridgeport getting heavy thereafter and congestion remaining until at least 7 p.m.
• Travelers moving between New York and Bridgeport or beyond should plan to depart after 8 p.m. on Friday, or wait until Saturday morning and hit the road before lunchtime.
• New Yorkers in search of a beach will be better heading south to the Jersey Shore than north toward The Hamptons: despite the closer proximity of northern beaches, the trip to Atlantic City can be up to two hours shorter.
• Gamblers beware! Travel between Bridgeport and Mashantucket, home of the Foxwoods Casino, will move at 41mph or slower during peak holiday weekend travel times.

New York City's unique geography will ensure that all travelers trying to get to or from the City can expect additional delays at bridge and tunnel crossings: the Throgs Neck Bridge and the Bronx-Whitestone Bridge, which connect the Bronx to Queens, will see delays of at least 30 minutes, and the George Washington Bridge and Cross Bronx Expressway, already strained by slow-downs caused by construction on the Alexander Hamilton Bridge, will be under additional stress€”as will the alternative routes nearby. Given the expected increase in the number of holiday travelers, combined with ongoing road construction and unexpected delays due to accidents and other incidents, Bak advises travelers to use free tools like the INRIX Traffic app, to help ease drivers' getaway trips with up-to-the-minute information about traffic conditions and travel times.

Additional information about traffic delays heading to popular road trip destinations for New York and Bridgeport residents is as follows:

NEW YORK CITY:

Traffic on Friday will start to build around lunchtime and remain slow until approximately 8 p.m. Congestion will peak one hour earlier than normal with average delays of 30 minutes or more on major routes out of New York City.

New York City to The Hamptons

New York City to Bridgeport

New York City to Mashantucket/Foxwoods Casino
After Bridgeport, I-95 traffic continues at average speeds of 41mph until New London, where travel will slow approaching Foxwoods.

New York City to Atlantic City, via Long Beach Island
Drivers heading out of New York over the Holland Tunnel will see the worst of the delays, where traffic will idle at around 8mph. However, once on the Garden State Parkway, traffic is reasonably trouble free with average speeds of 50mph.

BRIDGEPORT:

Connecticut is known to be a gateway state for many drivers heading between New York and New England.

Friday traffic will be busy from 1 p.m., especially slow after 5 p.m. and improve by 8 p.m.

For those heading into the City from the west, INRIX has already identified that the I-95 will be relentless from Rye, New York with backups of 32 miles, and the Merritt Parkway will be solid from Greenwich with average speeds of 24 mph.

Bridgeport to New Haven
Friday traffic will peak from 5 p.m. and roads on the outskirts of New Haven will also be very slow with Derby, Whalley and Dixwell Avenues among those most congested.

Bridgeport to Westport, CT
Looking east from Bridgeport, Saturday will be the busier day and most travelers will take I-95. However, historically, delays aren't significant with healthy speeds of 50mph on average on key routes.

(1) As determined by the 2011 INRIX Traffic Scorecard, released May 2012. For more information, see Inrix Scorecard.