traffic congestion

IELTS use

Useful for describing urban transport problems, discussing causes and solutions, and evaluating the impact of cars in cities in Writing Task 2 and Speaking Part 3.

Examples

1. Traffic congestion in the city centre has worsened over the past decade.
2. Many governments have introduced congestion charges to discourage driving during peak hours.
3. Heavy traffic congestion often leads to delays and increased air pollution.
4. To reduce traffic congestion, cities should invest in reliable public transport.

Collocations

severe traffic congestion

The city experiences severe traffic congestion every weekday morning.

reduce traffic congestion

Promoting cycling and walking can help reduce traffic congestion.

ease traffic congestion

Widening roads may temporarily ease traffic congestion but encourages more car use.

traffic congestion levels

Traffic congestion levels in the suburbs are much lower than in downtown areas.

cause traffic congestion

Roadworks and accidents can cause unexpected traffic congestion.

Word family

Noun

congestion

Verb

congest

Adjective

congested

Paraphrases

• heavy traffic: A simpler, common alternative that is natural in speaking.
• traffic jams: More informal and specific to queues of vehicles; useful in speaking.
• overcrowded roads: Focuses on the road capacity being exceeded, useful in writing.

Common mistakes

• traffic congestions to traffic congestion. Congestion is uncountable, so it does not take a plural form.
• congestion of traffic to traffic congestion. The noun 'congestion' is typically modified by 'traffic' directly, as in 'traffic congestion'.
• The roads are congestion in the morning. to The roads are congested in the morning.. 'Congestion' is a noun; to describe roads, use the adjective 'congested'.