METRO NETWORKS
PRESENTS
“THE TOP TEN WORST HOLIDAY TRAFFIC TIE-UPS IN AMERICA”

- The Experts at the Nation’s Largest Traffic Gathering Organization Unveils
The Ten Worst Traffic Tie-Ups During The Holiday Season -

New York, NY - November 21, 2005- Metro Networks, a Westwood One (NYSE: WON) company and the largest traffic gathering and reporting operation in America, unveiled today the list of The Top Ten Worst Holiday Traffic Tie-Ups in America. Compiled by Metro Networks traffic experts from across the country, the list covers the top 10 biggest traffic hot spots, in the largest U.S. markets, during the holiday season.

Metro Networks’ traffic gathering infrastructure is the largest in the world, including more than 70 local traffic operation centers, 1,800 traffic reporters, producers and broadcasters, over 100 aircraft and agreements with Departments of Transportation for ITS and 511 service deployment.

THE TOP TEN WORST HOLIDAY TRAFFIC TIE-UPS IN AMERICA

New York City - The Throggs Neck Bridge and Whitestone Bridge, both of which connect the Bronx and Queens. The two heavily traveled bridges are key choke points along the main artery connecting upstate New York, Connecticut and Long Island.

Los Angeles - Northbound Interstate 5 from Van Nuys through Castaic and Southbound through Orange County. Northbound gets highly congested with holiday travelers heading to San Francisco, Fresno, and other Northern California cities, while southbound attracts those travelers heading towards San Diego and Tijuana.

Chicago - The combination of the Borman Expressway I-80/94 and the Tri-State Tollway is the most heavily traveled stretch of interstate in the Wisconsin-Illinois-Indiana Tri-State area. To add to the congestion, the Tollway is currently under construction.

Philadelphia - Northbound Interstate 476 from the NB Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike (PATP) from the Mid-County tolls up to Lansdale. This stretch of roadway can back up more than 12 miles as a result of motorists heading up to the Pocono Mountains for the holidays.

San Francisco - Eastbound Interstate 80 through Sacramento to Tahoe. San Franciscans seeking “holiday weather” heavily travel this route to the nearby ski resorts and mountains.

Boston - Westbound Massachusetts Turnpike from downtown Boston to Interstate 84 in Sturbridge. This a 56-mile stretch that on the day before Thanksgiving has been known to completely back-up due to Interstate 84 serving as the main route south connecting Boston with the rest of the Eastern Seaboard.

Dallas - Highway 121 between the Dallas North Tollway and Preston Road in Frisco. This is primarily due to the 3+ million square feet of retail space located in the area attracting a myriad of holiday shoppers.

Washington DC - Southbound Interstate 95 from Springfield, VA through Fredericksburg, VA. This 30-mile stretch south of Washington DC experiences extensive delays on a regular basis, which are only amplified during the holiday season.

Atlanta - Interstate 285 (Perimeter Highway) in both directions between I-75 and I-85. This is a main route for shoppers heading to area malls creating massive congestion during the holiday season.

Detroit - Northbound US 23/Interstate 75 Merge. At Thanksgiving time, this merge experiences extreme congestion due to hunters heading north for the opening of Firearm Deer Season.

Honorable Mention
Miami - The Palmetto Expressway in both directions from Okeechobee Road to south of the Dolphin Expressway. The expressway serves as the Western border of Miami International Airport and to add to the holiday travel congestion, it is also currently under construction.

Westwood One (NYSE: WON) provides over 150 news, sports, music, talk, entertainment programs, features, live events and 24/7 formats. Through its subsidiaries, Metro Networks/Shadow Broadcast Services, Westwood One provides local content to the radio and TV industries including news, sports, weather, traffic, video news services and other information. SmartRoute Systems manages traffic information centers for state and local departments of transportation, and markets traffic and travel content to wireless, Internet, in-vehicle navigation systems and voice portal customers. Westwood One serves more than 5,000 radio stations. Westwood One is managed by Infinity Broadcasting Corporation.

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Press Contact:

 

Peter Sessa
Westwood One
212.641.2053
peter_sessa@westwoodone.com