San Diego is the Best City for Drivers in California, Report Claims
San Diego may have the best drivers in California, according to the results of a new analysis of the worst U.S. cities to drive in.
Researchers at Forbes magazine recently compared 47 major metropolitan areas across the country, and then ranked them on a list of the best cities to drive in using a set of key metrics, such as:
- Average commute time
- Average number of days with rain
- Number of hours spent in traffic
- Number of fatal car accidents
- Number of car repair shops
- Average gas prices
- Average insurance costs
- Number of parking lots and garages
Based on those criteria, Forbes found that the worst city to drive in anywhere in the U.S. was Oakland, California. Rounding out the top five were Miami, San Francisco, Houston, and Philadelphia.
When it comes down to cities in California only, Los Angeles took 11th place, Long Beach took 20th, and Sacramento took the 23rd spot.
Although the Forbes study didn’t rank the best cities to drive in, the metro areas that were further down the list were inherently “better” than the top worst cities to drive in.
Based on that, San Diego is the best city in California for drivers, coming in at number 42 on the list. Only Colorado Springs, Colorado; Tulsa, Oklahoma; El Paso, Texas; Omaha, Nebraska; and Raleigh, North Carolina beat it out.
San Diego came out on top for California drivers with an overall score of 33.78. That was based on its marks across categories like:
- driving experience
- safety
- cost of car ownership
- access to car maintenance.
So if someone asks you what driving in San Diego is like, you can confidently tell them that it’s better than driving in the Bay Area, LA, or Sacramento.
Want to be a safer San Diego driver? Check out our guide to keeping your cool on the road.
Media credit: Image licensed from Adobe
Mike Peterson is a writer, editor, and strategist based in San Diego. When he’s not writing and editing the La Jolla news, you can often find him practicing yoga, rock climbing, or exploring the outdoors with his wife and dog.
