UK politics
fromwww.bbc.com
3 days agoWill an M4 relief road ever be given the green light?
The M4 relief road issue is contentious, with political parties divided on its necessity and environmental impact amid ongoing congestion.
When Toronto's streetcars hit a rare open stretch of road, the metallic grind gives way to an airy electric hum, and for a fleeting moment, there is a feeling that one is hurtling along the knife's edge of the future. Seconds later, the illusion shatters: the car grinds to a halt, at a stop or more often, in traffic.
In something of a Pyrrhic victory for Boston drivers, the city improved its standing in a 2025 ranking of the most congested urban areas - even as the average Bostonian spent a whopping 83 hours languishing in traffic. Compared to last year, INRIX found that Boston drivers lost an additional four hours to traffic jams in 2025, costing about $1,529 per driver. Those 83 hours would be more than enough to log two full-time workweeks, or to watch the entire extended-cut "Lord of the Rings" trilogy seven times over - with minutes to spare.