Perth’s traffic nightmare to worsen with seven roads tipped to be among Australia’s most congested by 2031

Perth will have seven of the 10 most congested roads in the country within 12 years.

Mitchell Freeway afternoon congestion.

As pressure on WA roads increases, Perth is tipped to become Australia’s most congested city over the next 12 years.

Perth will have seven of the 10 most congested roads in Australia, including the top four.

Infrastructure Australia predicts Perth will become the nation’s most congested city by 2031.

Mitchell Freeway, Tonkin Highway, Graham Farmer Freeway/ Orrong Road/Welshpool Road East and Marmion Avenue/ West Coast Highway have been flagged as the hotspots in a recent Australian Infrastructure audit.

Other West Australian roads highlighted in the forecast were Wanneroo Road, Leach Highway and Roe Highway.

Data from Uber Movement shows motorists heading south from Osborne Park currently face some of the worst traffic delays in Perth. It can take between 8min. 54sec. and 19min. 45sec. — more than double the time depending on day and traffic — to get from Osborne Park to South Perth, with the average clocking in at 13min. 16sec.

Heading north up the Mitchell Freeway from Perth to Clarkson ranges from 21min. 44sec., to 32min. 27sec. — with 26min. 34sec. the average.

Perth to Guildford averages 21min. 35sec. through the week, stretching to 26min. 50sec. in heavy traffic.

Perth to Herne Hill averages 28min. 14sec., with minimum and maximum times ranging from 23min. 25sec. to 34min. 2sec.

RAC general manager of corporate affairs Will Golsby said congestion took time out of people’s everyday lives and was taking its toll on WA commuters and their families.

“There is no single solution to congestion and to manage it, a suite of options should be employed, including sustained and widespread investment in public transport, better cycling infrastructure, continued investment in our road network and implementation of intelligent transport systems,” Mr Golsby said.

The Insurance Commission of WA says we had about 15.1 per cent of Australia’s total number of registered vehicles last year despite having only 8.6 per cent of the population.

Statistics from the ICWA 2018 annual report show you are most likely to be injured in a crash during peak hour, with Thursday and Friday clocking up the highest number of motor injury claims.

“People are most likely to be injured from 3-6pm as this is when the most people are on the road,” ICWA secretary Kane Blackman said.

“People may be fatigued as they finish work and others may also be rushing for the school pick-up. We see fewer claims at the weekend, partly due to fewer cars on the roads.”

Local government accident hotspots in 2018 were Stirling with 1307 claims, followed by Swan (778), Wanneroo (619), Joondalup (615), Canning (592), Cockburn (575) and Perth (553).

The South West had the biggest number of crash claims (1118) in regional WA.

Mr Blackman said most crashes resulting in injury occurred on the Kwinana Freeway, followed by Ranford Road, Albany Highway, Great Eastern Highway and Armadale Road.

Mandurah Road was the most common regional location, followed by Bussell Highway, Old Coast Road, Pinjarra Road and Eyre Highway.

“In 2018, the Insurance Commission received around 12,000 motor injury claims from WA motorists,” Mr Blackman said.

“The impact of these crashes extends beyond the personal consequences for those involved as the cost is borne by drivers and vehicle owners through their motor insurance premiums and, ultimately, taxpayers.”

DAILY BREAKDOWN OF CRASHES RESULTING IN MOTOR INJURY CLAIMS 2018

You are most likely to be injured in a crash in WA between 3-6pm on any weekday.

Sunday: Number of crashes — 1098 (10 per cent)

Monday: Number of crashes — 1588 (14 per cent)

Tuesday: Number of crashes — 1807 (16 per cent)

Wednesday: Number of crashes — 1720 (15 per cent)

Thursday: Number of crashes — 1844 (17 per cent)

Friday: Number of crashes — 1828 (16 per cent)

Saturday: Number of crashes — 1325 (12 per cent)

Source: Insurance Commission WA Annual Report 2018

THE LONG AND SHORT OF IT

Uber Movement provides web-based trip data from cities around the world, showing average, minimum and maximum travel times. Here’s a sample of January journeys from the CBD to:

Armadale

Average: 32min. 41sec.

Range: 25min. 58sec.-41min. 6sec.

Ballajura

Average: 23min. 26sec.

Range: 18min. 52sec.-29min. 5sec.

Belmont

Average: 12min. 29sec.

Range: 9min. 24sec.-16min. 33sec.

Canning Vale

Average: 20min. 4sec.

Range: 16min. 12sec.-24min. 50sec.

Cottesloe

Average: 17min. 4sec.

Range: 13min. 38 sec.-21min. 21sec.

Guildford

Average: 21min. 35sec.

Range: 17min. 21 secs-26min. 50sec.

Joondalup

Average: 21min. 26sec.

Range: 17min. 16sec.-26min. 36sec.

Padbury

Average: 18min. 53sec.

Range: 14min. 29sec.-24min. 36sec.

Piara Waters

Average: 25min. 19sec.

Range: 20min. 41sec.-30min. 58sec.

South Perth

Average: 5min. 36sec.

Range: 3min. 14sec.-9min. 39sec.

Data retrieved from Uber Movement (c) 2019 Uber Technologies Inc, https://movement.uber.com/">https://movement.uber.com; boundaries taken with permission for Australia: (c) Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Originally published as Perth’s traffic nightmare to worsen with seven roads tipped to be among Australia’s most congested by 2031