TomTom research reveals drivers in China lose nine working days per year due to traffic

TomTom (TOM2), a global leader in traffic, today released the first edition of its China Traffic Index, revealing that drivers are spending an average of nine working days a year stuck in traffic.

China has the world’s fastest growing economy and according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation, as many as 300 million people will move from rural to urban areas by 2030.

“Rapid urbanisation has led to increased car sales across the country. Despite measures to reduce traffic congestion, such as limiting vehicle registration and building new roads, traffic continues to be a significant issue”, said Ralf-Peter Schäfer, Head of Traffic at TomTom. “By empowering drivers with accurate traffic information, so they know exactly which roads are congested and the length of the delay, they can get where they want to be faster.”

The top ten most congested cities in China, ranked by overall congestion level are:

The TomTom Traffic Index is a comprehensive measurement report of traffic congestion, comparing travel times of passenger vehicles in China during non-congested hours with travel times in peak hours. The Index measures both local roads and highways.

For more information: http://www.tomtom.com/en_gb/trafficindex/

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Notes to the Editor:

TomTom works with AutoNavi, the country’s leading digital mapping and navigation solutions provider to provide maps and navigation solutions to its clients.

About TomTom

TomTom (TOM2) empowers movement. Every day millions of people around the world depend on TomTom to make smarter decisions. We design and develop innovative products that make it easy for people to keep moving towards their goals. Best known for being a global leader in navigation and mapping products, TomTom also creates GPS Sport Watches, as well as state-of-the-art fleet management solutions and industry leading location based products.

Our business consists of four customer facing business units: Consumer, Automotive, Licensing and Telematics.

Founded in 1991 and headquartered in Amsterdam, we have 3,600 employees worldwide and sell our products in over 35 countries.