Study: B.R. traffic ranks 11th-worst nationwide

The Friday evening commute in Baton Rouge is worse than it is in New Orleans, according to a study published Friday in Governing magazine. Baton Rouge is ranked 11th-worst out of 100 surveyed areas, with an average Friday evening commute 23% longer than its noncongested periods, according to the traffic research firm Inrix of Kirkland, Wash. That adds seven minutes to a trip that normally would require only 30, reports The Times-Picayune in a story on the report. Monday-through-Thursday commutes in Baton Rouge take almost 15% longer than at uncongested times, averaging four extra minutes, according to the data. The New Orleans area’s typical Friday evening commute is almost 14% longer than off-peak times, according to Inrix. That adds about four minutes to the 30-minute commute. Monday-through-Thursday rush hour commutes in the New Orleans area take more than 9%, or almost three minutes, longer than in off-peak periods. To read the story in The Times-Picayune, click here; to read the story in Governing, click here.