Philadelphia ranked worst city for drivers in 2022 report

Philadelphia is the worst city to drive in, according to a new report by WalletHub.

The report ranked 100 American cities based on safety, traffic, average cost of car ownership, and accessibility of vehicles and maintenance. Raleigh, N.C. placed first, followed by Plano, Texas, while Philadelphia was ranked last — falling behind Detroit and Oakland, Calif. 

Philadelphia's lowest score in the report was for traffic, as Philadelphia drivers spend a similar amount as New York and Chicago drivers in congestion. 

Driving safety was another area that Philadelphia ranked low on, snagging the 85th spot. WalletHub measured this category by looking at the likelihood of accidents and car-related crimes, as well as the city’s driving laws.

Philadelphia’s highest score on the report was in the accessibility of vehicles and maintenance category, where it placed 76th. 

The WalletHub report used a point-based system to rank the cities, where 30 metrics — for example, “cost of new car," “average commute time by car,” and “gas stations per capita” — were graded on a 100-point scale. The authors then determined the weighted average across all of the metrics for each city to calculate the overall score. 

This isn’t the first time Philadelphia has received a low rank for driving conditions. In 2018, Allstate previously placed it at No. 191 of 200 for driving, and, in 2019, it secured the No. 2 spot for most aggressive drivers in a GasBuddy report that examined the frequency of behaviors like speeding and hard braking. 

Philadelphia auto crime has made headlines recently. District Attorney Larry Krasner announced on Monday that carjackings have been on the rise after briefly falling last March. In April, the city received a $25 million grant from the federal government to make roads safer in seven neighborhoods, including West Philly, reported The Philadelphia Inquirer. The project involves redesigning roads to prevent crashes and speeding.