Salt Lake City traffic congestion has decreased, study says

A report released early this morning shows that congestion in the Salt Lake City area decreased during the five year period from 2000 to 2005.

That's a contrast to most other states, which saw traffic delays increase, according to the report by the Texas Transportation Institute, which is part of Texas A&M University.

In 2000, motorists in Salt Lake City experienced about 31 hours of delay a year, the report said. In 2005, the number decreased to 27 hours of delay a year. The national average during 2005 was about 38 hours a year per driver, according to the study.

Los Angeles was listed as the most congested in the nation, with drivers experiencing about 72 hours of delay a year. Drivers in Spokane, Wash., experience only eight hours of delay a year, one of the lowest amounts among the cities that were studied, according to the report.

Salt Lake City has taken steps to reduce traffic delays, such as adding ramp meters on freeway on-ramps. The meters are used to signal to drivers when they can enter the freeway, which helps to cut bottlenecks from too many drivers trying to merge onto the road.

E-mail: nwarburton@desnews.com