reasons to work from home

Houston stuck at No. 7 on new list of U.S. cities with the worst traffic

Courtesy photo

Houston is heading in the wrong direction when it comes to terrible traffic.

In ConsumerAffairs’ 2025 ranking of U.S. metro areas with the worst traffic, the Houston area is parked at No. 7, up from No. 11 last year. ConsumerAffairs analyzed three sets of data — average commute time, daily hours of traffic congestion and rate of fatal car crashes — to rank the 50 largest metros based on population.

Here’s how Houston fared in this year’s ranking:

Average commute time of 29.8 minutes, unchanged from last year.
Five hours and 48 minutes of weekday traffic congestion, up 27 percent from last year.
10.7 fatal car crashes per 100,000 people, down 23.3 percent from last year.

“For motorists, prolonged time on the road increases the risk of accidents, particularly for motorcyclists who navigate between lanes in slow-moving traffic — [an illegal] practice known as lane splitting,” according to Houston-based personal injury law firm Ben Bronston & Associates.

Being stuck in so much traffic might prompt people to drive too fast to make up time, which is a bad idea considering Texas ranks as the fourth most expensive state in America for speeding tickets. The Houston area is also home to five roads ranked among the most deadly in America.

Making matters worse for Houston drivers, the nonprofit Congress for the New Urbanism placed the I-45 expansion in Houston on its 2025 list of “freeways without futures.” I-45 was cited as one of nine U.S. freeways where the infrastructure is “nearing the end of its functional life.”

Houston is no stranger to rankings of places with bad traffic.

The Global Traffic Scorecard released last year by Inrix found the average Houston drive lost 62 hours to traffic delays in 2023, putting it in eighth place among cities with the worst traffic. On the scorecard, Dallas ranked 17th, Austin ranked 21st, and San Antonio ranked 25th.

Dallas-Fort Worth, Austin, and San Antonio appeared in the same order on this year’s ConsumerAffairs list:

Dallas-Fort Worth ranked 14th, up one spot from last year. In DFW, weekday congestion time rose 27.6 percent to four hours and 47 minutes. Meanwhile, average commute time barely budged compared with last year (0.4 percent), and the rate of fatal car crashes plummeted 37.5 percent.
Austin ranked 15th, up two spots from last year. Austin saw weekday congestion time climb 22.4 percent to four hours and 50 minutes, while average commute time inched up by 2.9 percent and the rate of fatal car crashes dipped 4.5 percent.
San Antonio ranked 24th, up three spots from last year. Weekday congestion time in San Antonio jumped 13.5 percent to three hours and 38 minutes. Meanwhile, average commute time went up less than one percent and the rate of fatal car crashes fell 13.7 percent.

“Congestion is oftentimes a sign of economic prosperity,” Michael Manville, an urban planning professor at UCLA’s Luskin School of Public Affairs, told ConsumerAffairs. “Because we don’t do anything to regulate access, the roads in an area with a booming economy become overloaded and congested.”

Here are the top cities with the worst traffic, according to the study:

Washington, D.C.
Los Angeles, CA
Miami, FL
San Francisco, CA
Atlanta, GA
New York, NY
Houston, TX
Seattle, WA
Baltimore, MD
San Jose, CA

traffic lists

a new record

Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo commits over $30 million to education

Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo cattle exhibition

Courtesy of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo

The money supports studies in fields such as animal husbandry.

The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo continues its annual tradition of breaking its own record when it comes to educational endowments. On Giving Tuesday, the organization pledged to disburse $30,353,380 in 2026 in the form of scholarships, grants, and other funding.

“This milestone moment of reaching $30 million in a single year highlights the Rodeo’s unwavering dedication to Texas youth and education,” HLSR president and CEO Chris Boleman said in a statement. “Thanks to our loyal donors, sponsors, more than 36,000 volunteers and dedicated attendees, 2026 will reach historic heights in supporting the next generation of leaders, agricultural professionals and organizations that share the Rodeo’s mission.”

This brings the total of education funding provided by the Rodeo since 1932 up to $660 million. Last year's $28 million commitment also set a new record.

One innovation this year is the establishment of the Area Go Texan Vocational Scholarship, a program that expands on the relationship with 68 Texas counties through the Area Go Texan affiliate program. One student from each county will receive $6,000 toward a degree or certificate in a vocational field at a Texas nonprofit college or university. Another $500,000 in vocational scholarships will awarded to 10 schools in 2026. Guidelines for applying can be found at this link.

In total, the Rodeo will hand out $15,126,000 in scholarships, $11,273,500 to junior exhibitors, $3,430,880 in grants, and $523,000 in graduate assistantships. Grants will be awarded to 82 Texas institutions and organizations, such as Arts for Rural Texas, BridgeYear, The Bryan Museum, Diversity in the Arts and Entertainment, Greater Houston Partnership Foundation, Multicultural Education and Counseling through the Arts (MECA), Space Center Houston, Texas State University Development Foundation, and University of St. Thomas at Houston.

Money for the annual endowment is raised through the annual auctions, sales of livestock and art, and through charitable donations. The goal of the endowment program is to promote study and research in agriculture, animal husbandry, and other fields that directly benefit the Rodeo.

The Rodeo is scheduled to run from March 2 – 22, 2026. More information on performers, attractions, and vendors can be found at RodeoHouston.com. Scholarship applications are open through February 2, with funds being awarded in summer 2026.

rodeohouston houston livestock show and rodeo