18 July 2007
Cardiff has been named as the worst place in the UK to drive a car for the second year running, according to a recent poll on the nation's most car-friendly towns and cities.
The report by Virgin Money Car Insurance rated the Welsh capital as a real headache for motorists, with Nottingham, London, Leeds and Slough following on behind.
The firm rated towns and cities using indicators including petrol prices, car park spaces, cost of parking, the number of speed cameras and the level of car-related crime.
Dundee came out best in the survey, also holding on to its title for a second consecutive year, with the cheapest car parking and the most number of car parking spaces.
"Despite being a nation of car lovers, none of us enjoy the experience of sitting in traffic. A truly car-friendly city shouldn't have major congestion problems," Philip Hale, spokesman for Trafficmaster, which provided congestion data for the study, said.
"While Dundee does see congestion on the A90, in general the city centre has no major problems with most traffic directed towards the waterfront. Cardiff however, is next to the busy M4 motorway, which won't have helped its cause in lifting itself off the bottom of the Car Friendly tables."
Jason Wyer-Smith of Virgin Money Car Insurance added: "With more than 23 million UK drivers it's clear that we are in love with the car and spend a considerable amount of time in them.
"Unfortunately time spent driving is not always the most pleasant and our research shows the driving experience varies widely across the country. Every motorist will have their own definition of driving hell whether it's hunting for a parking space, being stuck in a traffic jam or being caught by a speeding camera for a momentary lapse."
Unsurprisingly, London came out with the most expensive car parking rates - a two hour stay in one of the city's car parks costs an average of 11.