Courtesy of WalletHub

Courtesy of WalletHub

Due to its high ownership and maintenance costs, accident likelihood, and average hours of traffic delays, Washington D.C., took last place in a recent study of the “2016 Best and Worst Cities for Drivers.” Arizona took the top two spots (Scottsdale and Tucson) for the best U.S. cities for driving.

Looking at the 100 most populated U.S. cities, WalletHub, a personal finance website, ranked them across four dimensions to identify the best cities for drivers: 1) ownership & maintenance costs; 2) traffic conditions & infrastructure quality; 3) auto safety; 4) auto availability & maintenance accessibility.

Then WalletHub recognized 21 relevant metrics; each metric was given a value between 0 and 100. Metrics included average gas prices, average parking rate, average annual hours of traffic delays, number of days with precipitation, rate of car thefts, number of motor-vehicle crash deaths per capita, and number of auto repair shops per 100,000 residents.

Here are the top 10 best cities for driving:

1) Scottsdale, Ariz.
2) Tucson, Ariz.
3) Corpus Christi, Texas
4) Gilbert, Ariz.
5) Mesa, Ariz.
6) Chandler, Ariz.
7) Reno, Nev.
8) Laredo, Texas
9) Las Vegas
10) Tampa, Fla.

Here are the top 10 worst cities for driving:

91) Boston
92) Seattle
93) New York
94) Oakland, Calif.
95) Baltimore
96) Philadelphia
97) Chicago
98) San Francisco
99) Detroit
100) Washington, D.C.

According to the study, here are some other key findings:

Lowest Average Annual Hours of Traffic Delays: Lubbock, Texas; Stockton, Calif.; Laredo, Texas; Bakersfield, Calif.; Lincoln, Neb.

Highest Average Annual Hours of Traffic Delays: Los Angeles, Long Beach, Calif.; Anaheim, Calif.; Irvine, Calif.; Santa Ana, Calif.; Washington, D.C.

Lowest Accident Likelihood vs. National Average: Boise, Idaho; Madison, Wis.; Laredo, Texas; Wichita, Kan.; Reno, Nev.

Highest Accident Likelihood vs. National Average: Philadelphia; San Francisco; Boston; Washington, D.C.; Baltimore

Lowest Car-Theft Rate: Irvine, Calif.; Gilbert, Ariz.; Virginia Beach, Va.; Boise, Idaho; Chandler, Ariz.

Highest Car-Theft Rate: St. Louis; Milwaukee; San Bernardino, Calif.; Detroit; Oakland, Calif.

Click here for the full report and to see where your city ranks.

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