Abstract
This study analyses traffic congestion’s impact on 363 cities worldwide, focusing on adaptation strategies like metro systems and airport expansion. While congestion modestly affects environmental quality, living standards, and economic outcomes, it significantly prompts investment in faster transport modes especially in cities with longer travel times. However, not all congested cities adopt such measures. Developing countries face more severe congestion challenges than developed ones, which manage it better. Interestingly, the quality of urban governance shows little global influence on traffic management. Overall, congestion increases the likelihood of adaptive responses, though it explains less than 10 per cent of urban outcome variation.
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