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Honolulu is the worst US city for drivers

For many people, Honolulu likely brings to mind the beach, year-round sunshine, and amazing seafood.

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But anyone who's ever visited the Hawaiian capital knows that driving there can be downright miserable. 

So miserable, in fact, that Honolulu comes in dead last in US metros when it comes to overall driver satisfaction, according to data from the navigation app Waze.

Honolulu skyline
When it comes to driving, Honolulu is no paradise. Shutterstock.com / Lorcel

Waze looks at more than just traffic — and yes, traffic is a huge issue in Honolulu — to determine driver satisfaction. It takes into account other factors that may have affect driver happiness like density of accidents, road conditions, density of services like gas stations, and gas prices. 

"Out of all US metros examined, Honolulu was found to have the most road hazards (e.g. accidents and roadkill), scored the lowest when it came to road quality and infrastructure, and was one of the worst traffic metros," Julie Mossler, a Waze spokesperson told Tech Insider.

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"Given it is surrounded by water and that there are only two major highways that run through the city, Honolulu faces unique challenges that other cities are better positioned to alleviate," Mossler noted.

Waze, which has more than 50 million users around the world, deems Phoenix, Ariz. as the best US metro in terms of driver satisfaction.  

Waze crowd sources information like accidents, traffic, and even police officer locations from its more than 50 million users around the world. 

Google bought Waze for $1.1 billion two years ago, and now some of its crowd sourced information like accidents have found their way into Google Maps. 

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Here are the five best and worst US metros for drivers, according to Waze. 

 Top 5 Best US-Metros for Drivers:

  1. Phoenix, Ariz.
  2. Greensboro, N.C.
  3. Detroit, Mich.
  4. Dallas, Texas
  5. Cleveland, Ohio

Top 5 Worst US-Metros for Drivers:

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  1. Honolulu, Hawaii
  2. Portland, Ohio
  3. Baton Rouge, La.
  4. San Diego, Calif.
  5. Fort Myers, Fla.

And here's what Waze takes into account when it determines driver satisfaction around the world:

waze global driver satisfaction index
Waze
Hawaii
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