Imagine Being Stuck In The Longest Traffic Jam In The World

If you think that you have been stuck in some ridiculous traffic jams, you won't believe what drivers in China are dealing with on a daily basis! Check out the longest traffic jam in the world, which happened in 2010. They called it the China National Highway 110 Traffic Jam.

You think traffic is bad on your way home? Many of us would consider a 30 minute backup of cars on the highway a complete drag, stuck in a hot car inching down the highway. Imagine getting stuck here for upto 5 days going only 0.6 miles (1 km) a day.

China's 50 lane highway turned every drivers nightmare into a reality. Over 10,000 cars and trucks were completely stuck on at least 100 km's of highway in China, virtually turning the road into a parking lot. It is a very clear problem when a 50 lane highway can jam up the far for that long!

Congestion slowed down thousands of vehicles for 62 miles (100 km) and lasted an unbelievable 12 days! Some drivers literally lived in traffic for up to 5 days. Cars crawled along at barely more than 0.6 miles (1 km) a day.

This massive traffic tie-up is a recurring problem in China. The traffic on Highway 110 in China has grown approximately 40% a year for the past several years, making this a major concern for the Chinese. At the time of the China National Highway 110 Traffic Jam, the Highway was 60% over capacity, with over 10,000 vehicles inching only 1 km per day. The congestion slowed down thousands of vehicles for 62 miles (100 km)

This massive traffic tie-up was due to road construction, and compounded by a transportation network that has been over capacity for years. It was largely due to heavy transport trucks heading to Beijing during a huge coal production in Mongolia. The excess of trucks on top of the road construction that had recently begun caused traffic to become so overloaded that it just stopped, unable to fit everyone on the Highway. Minor breakdowns, accidents and improper paperwork for coal carrying transport trucks also aided in the problem. Police requested that coal mining company suspend operations and halt transportation until the traffic jam was resolved.

Enterprising locals came to sell them food and water - at inflated prices, of course! They stood at the edge of the highway selling items such as instant noodles, cigarettes and bottles of water. Their prices were raised due to the fact the drivers were stuck and had to pay them. Drivers had to spend 15 yuan for a bottle of water which would normally cost 1 yuan. Some local vendors created mobile convenient stores on bicycles travelling down the highway selling items at triple the cost.

To avoid gridlock, many Chinese prefer bikes and public transportation. 30 minutes in a packed subway beats 3 days in a crawling car.

What is the worst traffic jam you have been in? Has it been anything like the one in this video?