How to beat Adelaide’s traffic blues and avoid traffic jams with groundbreaking data

See the interactive map that includes groundbreaking data to help you beat the peak-hour traffic jams – in some cases halving your travel time.

Dodging Adelaide’s peak-hour traffic jams has been made easier with groundbreaking data revealing the fastest ways to get in and out of the city.

The mapping, which has been shared with The Advertiser, was produced using tens of thousands of uploads from GPS tracking equipment found on newer cars.

The owner of the data, HERE Technologies general manager Daniel Antonello, said 160 million vehicles worldwide were now fitted with GPS sensors, making it easier to accurately record driving times.

“This data shows which routes in Adelaide have been most congested during the morning and afternoon peaks in 2022 so far,” he said.

“So motorists could use this information to select more efficient commuting routes if their usual route looks to be more congested than alternatives.”

The Advertiser used data from 20 major roads within a ring route bounded by Cross Rd, Marion Rd, Grand Junction Rd and Glynburn Rd.

Peak hour traffic in Adelaide. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Brenton Edwards

Excluded from the data are long traffic delays caused by accidents or breakdowns.

To the east of the CBD, motorists should stay away from The Parade, which on Fridays recorded the worst average 5pm travel time of nearly 12 minutes westbound, compared with just under seven minutes on Kensington Rd.

RAA expert Charles Mountain said this matched anecdotal evidence of congestion on The Parade.

“The Parade generally is slower than either Magill or Kensington roads but both of these carry around 22,000 vehicles per day,’’ he said.

“The Parade carries around 16,000, but between Dequetteville Tce and Osmond Terrace it carries slightly more than both Magill and Kensington roads.”

In the western suburbs, Sir Donald Bradman Drive is by far the better option than Henley Beach Rd.

Motorists stuck in peak-hour traffic in Adelaide. Picture: Brenton Edwards

For example, when heading out of the city on Tuesdays at 5pm, the travel time averaged about six and a half minutes on Sir Donald Bradman Drive.

But travelling the same distance on Henley Beach Rd took about 12 minutes.

Mr Mountain said fewer people driving to Adelaide Airport may have skewed these figures.

North of the city, motorists should avoid Prospect Rd, where northbound trips consistently take 10 minutes. The data shows a similar trip on Main North Rd takes just over seven minutes on average.

Mr Mountain said the number of drivers who used Main North Rd was more than double that of Prospect Rd, which only had one lane in each direction and a lower speed limit.

Unley Rd is the best option for drivers heading south, recording trip times as low as just under four minutes. “The frequent activation of the Goodwood tram crossing might be responsible for the worse performance of Goodwood Rd compared with Unley Rd,’’ Mr Mountain said.

HERE Technologies also helps drivers, with some manufacturers such BMW using the knowledge to suggest traffic options through on-board speakers.