Stuck for 113 Hours! This French City Has the Worst Traffic Jams – Avoid Driving Here!

Every driver despises being stuck in traffic. Watching the minutes tick by while remaining stationary, surrounded by a chorus of honking and aggressive driving, ensures a late arrival, wasted fuel, and a return home both exhausted and irritated. Even worse, this prolonged wait frays nerves and turns every commute into a test of patience, especially during rush hours when heading to work, leaving work, or picking up children from school. This is a reality that affects many cities across France. But which city holds the unfortunate title of having the worst traffic jams?

Many would instinctively answer “Paris.” However, while the capital city has it’s issues with congestion, it currently does not top the list. According to the latest 2024 ranking of France’s most congested cities by GPS systems company TomTom, Paris takes second place. The top spot is held by another city altogether, boasting a population of 750,000 inhabitants, located in the Southwest: Bordeaux.

TomTom’s data reveals that Bordeaux is the city where drivers lose the most time to traffic jams. From January to December 2024, a driver in Bordeaux typically spent an average of 113 hours stuck in city-center traffic, making the average time to travel 10 km in this area about 31 minutes. Another significant point: travel time increases by about 33% during traffic jams compared to flowing traffic.

Following Bordeaux and Paris in the ranking are Marseille, Nice, Nantes, Lyon, Le Havre, Nancy, Rouen, and finally Orléans, rounding out the top 10 cities where it’s best to avoid driving if possible. Only two cities showed a slight improvement: Le Mans and Metz. There, drivers shaved off about ten seconds to travel 10 km in the city center last year. It’s a small win, but a win nonetheless!