South Africans spend 23 days driving to work every year

Few countries rival South Africa when it comes to the average length of a daily commute, with local motorists spending an average of 23 days and 1 hour on the road each year.

This is according to new research from UK car leasing expert Autotrader, which reveals how much time drivers around the world spend behind the wheel each week.

The study surveyed drivers in 15 countries on their average weekly driving time, as well as the time they spend on specific journeys including the commute to work, the school run, errands and vacations.

It found that drivers in France and Germany have a lower daily drive time, likely because both countries have first-class public transport systems in place.

These two nations did, however, report the longest average time spent driving to holiday or vacation destinations.

According to the surveyed drivers, German drivers spend 11 days and 14 hours commuting and running errands, while French drivers spend 11 days and 5 hours behind the wheel.

In comparison, Germans spend 10 hours 26 minutes getting to holiday destinations each year, while it takes the French an average of 9 hours 59 minutes.

This suggests drivers from these countries may be more disciplined day-to-day, while fully embracing the open road and the opportunities of being in mainland Europe when it comes to a holiday road trip. 

South Africans, on the other hand, have it worse than any driver surveyed in the other 14 countries.

Below is a list of the countries surveyed by Autotrader and their average commute times:

Motorists across the 15 countries surveyed spend an average of just over six hours per week behind the wheel, with a significant gap between the most and least car-dependent nations.

Drivers spending the most time behind the wheel

South African drivers spend more time on the road than motorists surveyed in other countries, adding up to more than 10 hours and 38 minutes in their cars every week.

This is more than double the British average and nearly three hours more than Ireland, which took second place.

Joining South Africa and Ireland in the top three is Australia, which shares public transport network issues similar to the other two countries on the podium.

Autotrader’s data shows that local drivers top the table for the longest time on the school run, at about 1 hour 14 minutes a week, visiting friends and family, at 1 hour 53 minutes a week, and everyday errands, at 1 hour 36 minutes per week.

The average weekly total commute time in South Africa is 1 hour 48 minutes, which is merely one minute less than in Australia, which tops this particular table.

According to Tom Roberts, car leasing expert at Autotrader, the company’s data shows how differently the world drives.

“From South Africa’s long daily commutes and school runs, to French and German drivers saving their miles for the open road on a summer holiday,” he said.

“Wherever you are in the world, the time we spend in the car adds up to something significant.”