THIS news is unlikely to be much consolation to local drivers, but traffic in Hereford isn't nearly as bad as many UK cities.

Drivers in Edinburgh face the worst traffic congestion in the country, according to new figures.

Analysis by sat-nav manufacturer TomTom suggested that a typical rush hour journey in the Scottish capital takes 40 per cent longer compared with free-flow conditions.

London is the second-worst city for congestion with an average extra travel time of 37 per cent, followed by Bournemouth, Hull and Belfast with 34 per cent each.

On average, UK motorists driving in peak hours spend an extra five-and-a-half days stuck in traffic each year.

Middlesbrough was found to be the least congested UK town or city analysed by TomTom.

A 10-year plan to further improve traffic flow in the town – including a new park and ride railway station – was announced in December 2018.

Edinburgh was ranked 27th in the world in terms of congestion.

Mumbai took top spot, with drivers facing an average of 65 per cent extra travel time in the Indian city.

Heiko Schilling, head of navigation at TomTom, said: "The UK was home to nine cities in the top 100 most congested cities globally.

"Overall congestion is up by an average of 1 per cent (year on year) in the UK – a mild increase but an increase nonetheless. Only Manchester, Glasgow and Portsmouth have seen congestion levels improve.

"These results show that there's still a lot of work to be done."

He added: "Advances in journey planning, autonomous vehicles and car sharing schemes all promise to alleviate congestion in Edinburgh and other cities in the UK and around the world."