Davao City had worst traffic in Philippines, ranked 10th globally — 2024 Traffic Index
MANILA, Philippines — Davao City ranked as the most congested metropolitan area in the Philippines, with the slowest travel times, according to the 2024 Traffic Index.
Globally, it placed 10th for the longest time spent traveling 10 kilometers and fifth for congestion levels.
The Traffic Index, an annual study by transportation data company TomTom Traffic, analyzes city traffic worldwide. The latest report examined 500 cities across 62 countries.
In 2024, the study found that driving 10 kilometers in Davao City and its surrounding areas took an average of 28 minutes and 17 seconds — 40 seconds faster than in 2023.
This translates into an average of 107 hours, or roughly four and a half days, lost to traffic for Filipinos traveling during rush hours everyday for work in 2024.
The study found that roads in the city experienced the heaviest traffic between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. on weekdays, with travel times and congestion levels typically easing around 7 p.m.
Meanwhile, Davao City had a congestion level of 44% in trip-dense regions, meaning vehicles took about 44% longer to travel through the city's roads compared to free-flowing conditions or the lowest recorded travel time.
Metro Manila, which was previously the world’s most traffic-congested and slowest metro area in 2023, was not mentioned in the 2024 rankings.
Despite the slight improvement, Davao City's 2024 travel time remained longer than Metro Manila's 25 minutes and 30 seconds for a 10-kilometer trip during its peak congestion in 2023.
By city center. Davao City ranked even worse when focusing on travel times in its busiest areas, or city center, placing eighth globally while still recording the longest travel time in the Philippines.
In these high-traffic zones, covering 10 kilometers took an average of 32 minutes and 59 seconds, the study found.
Considering this travel time, Filipinos spent nearly six days, or 136 hours, stuck in traffic in Davao City’s central areas.
Other cities. Manila and Caloocan City also ranked among the top 30 cities worldwide with the worst traffic in their metropolitan areas, placing 15th and 18th, respectively.
Compared to Davao City, it took Filipinos an average of 27 minutes and 18 seconds to travel 10 kilometers in Manila — just 59 seconds faster. This travel time was 10 seconds longer than in 2023.
Caloocan City, on the other hand, had traffic conditions that stole 27 minutes and one second from Filipinos every 10-kilometer trip, one minute and 16 seconds faster than in Davao City.
Both cities were also included in the top 10 most congested cities globally, with Manila placing ninth and Caloocan City ranking 10th. These cities had a congestion level of about 40%.
No other cities in the Philippines were among the top 500 studied.
The 2024 Traffic Index found that Barranquilla, Colombia, had the longest average travel time, with residents spending 32 minutes and 32 seconds to travel 10 kilometers.
Other countries with severe traffic conditions include Peru and India, which had several cities ranking in the top 10.
Fastest travel time. Meanwhile, the cities with the shortest average travel times — around eight to 10 minutes for 10 kilometers — were located in Italy, the United States, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Switzerland.
TomTom Traffic explained that travel time is influenced by several factors, including road infrastructure, speed limits, street categories, road sizes, weather, traffic congestion and roadworks.
The 2024 Traffic Index can be found here.
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