Colorado home to 5th-best 'city for driving' – but it's also home to one of the worst

Forbes Advisor recently conducted a data analysis in order to determine which major cities around the country are the 'worst cities to drive in.'

In order to make their ranking, the publication took at look at 15 metrics in four categories: driving experience, safety, cost of car ownership, and access to car maintenance. The country's 47 most-populated cities were included in the analysis, which includes two places in Colorado.

Denver ultimately ranked the worst on the Forbes list, ending up getting dubbed the 14th-worst major city for driving in the nation. 'Driving experience' metrics (traffic congestion, average rush hour speed, weather factors) and 'safety' metrics (fatal accidents per capita and car thefts per capita) hurt the Mile High City's overall rank the most.

While driving in Denver might be a pain, the data analysis revealed that driving can be a breeze in Colorado Springs. This city, located about an hour south of Denver, ranked as the 5th-best city for driving, boosted by a low cost of car ownership and a positive driving experience.

As someone who lives in Colorado Springs and has traveled through and around Denver many times, I'd have to agree. Colorado Springs has its sprawl, which can occasionally mean a long drive across town, and I-25 can get backed up during evening commutes for a few downtown exits, but overall, it seems way easier and less stressful to get around Colorado Springs compared to Denver most of the time.

The worst place for driving nationwide was determined to be Oakland, California, while the best was Raleigh, North Carolina.

How does driving in Colorado compare to driving other places you've lived? Let us know in the comments.

Find the full Forbes report here.

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