TomTom's new annual index deciphers the evolution of urban travel in France

TomTom's Traffic Index is based on real-world data collected daily by over 600 million navigation systems worldwide. For each city and its metropolitan area, TomTom provides congestion levels, average speeds, and average travel times during peak hours, based on data collected over millions of kilometers driven by 2025.

Major trends in the world by 2025

For the first time, TomTom has calculated global and country-specific congestion levels by aggregating speeds recorded over more than 3.600 trillion kilometers traveled on the world's road network. The results confirm a clear upward trend: global congestion has increased by 5 percentage points, from 20% to 25%. With a national rate of 20,1%, France, thanks to its dense road network, ranks 24th among European countries.

In 2025, despite this overall increase in congestion, more than a quarter of the cities studied in the report saw their congestion index improve. At the same time, only 7% experienced an increase in average speed, highlighting a general downward trend in urban speeds. This trend is most often part of public policies aimed at limiting speeds in cities, with the objective of ensuring better road safety.

Mexico City, Bangalore, Dublin, Lodz, and Pune are among the most congested cities in the world: in Mexico City, the congestion index for all journeys is projected to reach 76% by 2025, with peaks of 126% during rush hour. However, the record for rush-hour traffic congestion is held by Lima, Peru, where a driver loses an average of over 180 hours per year on a single 10km journey during peak morning and evening hours.

The situation in France

In France, on average for the 29 cities analyzed, the congestion rate (which measures the impact of traffic jams on average travel times, compared to an 'ideal' travel time) has increased slightly compared to 2024. However, this result masks disparities: 6 cities saw their congestion rates decrease, particularly in Paris where the congestion index fell from 44% to 40%, and in Toulon from 34% to 31%. The index also decreased in Grenoble, Rouen, Brest, and Nice; it remained stable in Marseille. In all 22 other cities, the congestion index increased compared to the previous year.

In 2025, Lyon had the highest congestion rate in the world, at 47%. During peak hours, this rate climbed to 80% in the morning and 90% in the evening. As a result, on a typical 10km journey during rush hour, a Lyon driver lost over 121 hours due to traffic jams.

However, it is in the city of Nancy that average speeds are the slowest, with an average speed of 19,2 km/h – essentially due to the absence of expressways or urban highways within the municipal limits of the capital of Lorraine.

In Paris, the significant structural changes of recent years (speed limits on the ring road, dedicated lanes, limited traffic zones, etc.) have resulted in a general decrease in average speed (20 km/h compared to 20,6 km/h in 2024), even during periods of light traffic (28,1 km/h, down 1,5 km/h). Toulon is the only French city in the ranking where average travel time has decreased, likely due to the widening of the A57 motorway to three lanes in each direction over a 7-kilometer stretch.

Finally, unlike in 2024 where weather conditions were one of the main unpredictable factors that could paralyze a city the most (storm Caetano, storm Nelson), the worst days of 2025 are more related to heavy traffic linked to holiday departures and long weekends (April 17 in Lyon for Easter, August 29 in Bordeaux for the end of the school holidays, June 5 in Paris for the Pentecost weekend).

Data to help cities understand mobility patterns

Beyond the frustration of motorists, traffic jams lead to increased pollution, higher fuel consumption, and increased pressure on infrastructure. While traffic levels can be an indicator of a city's economic health, they hinder the productivity of its businesses.

Mobility is a top priority for many cities, departments, and regions worldwide. Congestion and longer travel times impact the environment, contributing to increased carbon emissions and diminishing the attractiveness of cities. TomTom's traffic data can be used to better understand real-world mobility patterns within a given area and to develop tailored solutions for each specific situation.

According to Ralf-Peter Schäfer, Vice President in charge of traffic and travel information at TomTom: “Faced with the growth and adaptation of cities, we must address the multiple challenges that are generating increasing traffic congestion. This upward trend demands urgent action: smarter mobility planning, investments in public and shared transport, improved traffic management technologies, and coordinated policies. Our traffic data allows urban planners and policymakers to better understand these interconnected issues and make informed decisions to ensure that cities remain pleasant, efficient, and sustainable despite increasing congestion.”

According to Delphine Séné, transport expert at Alenium (a consulting firm within the Klee Group): “Mobility surveys are clear: the modal share of cars has been declining in all these French metropolitan areas for the past 10 to 15 years. However, while it's true that a reduction in car modal shares doesn't necessarily mean fewer cars in terms of sheer volume (especially if overall mobility in a given area is increasing), the paradox remains: why are there still so many (or even more) traffic jams? In reality, congestion is no longer primarily a matter of the number of vehicles or kilometers of road, even if the public debate often remains focused on the “lack of infrastructure.” Congestion has become an operational issue. Data from the TomTom barometer confirms this: the cities at the top of the list have all experienced significant phases of roadworks or adverse weather conditions this year. Congestion reduction is achieved through the effectiveness of methods and tools for managing traffic flow and operating infrastructure. A less visible but equally necessary and strategic undertaking, if not more so, for cities.”