North Carolina City Named No. 1 Best City For Driving
Where in North Carolina is the best city for driving? Absolutely cannot be Charlotte. Driving here is an absolute nightmare, with traffic laws being mere suggestions and no consequences for breaking them. But that’s another rant for another day.
But the best city for driving? It’s Raleigh. And this wasn’t just in the state either. It was part of a nationwide study by our friends at WalletHub. And Raleigh ranked 1st nationally! Not far behind at 4th overall was Greensboro as well. So folks, it’s just the Queen City that’s the issue.
According to WalletHub, Americans lose an average of $733 per year due to time spent in traffic. (What about the patience I lose?) That’s why our friends at the personal-finance website WalletHub released areport on 2024’s Best & Worst Cities to Drive in with the goal of determining where people can enjoy the cheapest, smoothest, and safest driving experience.
To do this WalletHub compared the 100 largest cities across 30 key metrics. The data set ranges from average gas prices to annual hours in traffic congestion per auto commuter to the likelihood of accidents.
And here are what they found as the best and worst cities to drive in across the US.
North Carolina City Named No. 1 Best City For Driving
| Best Cities for Driving | Worst Cities for Driving |
| 1. Raleigh, NC | 91. San Jose, CA |
| 2. Boise, ID | 92. Seattle, WA |
| 3. Corpus Christi, TX | 93. Washington, DC |
| 4. Greensboro, NC | 94. New York, NY |
| 5. Jacksonville, FL | 95. Chicago, IL |
| 6. Orlando, FL | 96. Detroit, MI |
| 7. Scottsdale, AZ | 97. Los Angeles, CA |
| 8. Wichita, KS | 98. San Francisco, CA |
| 9. Tampa, FL | 99. Philadelphia, PA |
| 10. Plano, TX | 100. Oakland, CA |
What about the rest of North Carolina? Winston-Salem came in 12th, Durham 15th, and Charlotte 31st. So while not terrible overall the Queen City certainly ranked lowest in the state. Do you agree that Raleigh is the best place to drive? I travel there often and while I-40 can suck, and the city certainly has an affinity for traffic circles, I’d definitely rank it better than Charlotte. But the best in the nation? I’m not convinced!
Thanks to our friends at WalletHub for sharing their research with us. You can read the full study and methodology here.
