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After crunching all the various numbers, Calgary emerged as the 10th best major city to drive in worldwide and No. 1 in North America.

The other Canadian cities measured and placed were Montreal (13th), Toronto (14th), Ottawa (22nd) and Vancouver (48th). The best of the 10 U.S. cities featured in the survey was Seattle, which ranked 16th.

In individual categories that were part of the overall score, Calgary emerged as the world’s No. 1 when it came to air quality and lack of pollution. It also scored highly in a relative lack of congestion, placing fourth. The city’s poorest comparative rankings came in on scores of 74th in public transit alternatives and a woeful ninth worst — this being the entire world surveyed — when it comes to high parking costs.

Overall, once scores in all categories were collected, the best big city on the planet to drive in was judged to be Dusseldorf, Germany, followed by Dubai, U.A.E., and then Zurich, Switzerland, in third place. Of course, there are certain places you simply don’t want to even consider getting behind the wheel — Kolkata, India; Karachi, Pakistan; and Lagos, Nigeria, being the worst three such examples of the 100 metro areas studied.

“Cars are an important accessory of modern life and the means by which many use to get from A to B. Yet poor urban planning or a lack of civil education can make driving the most stressful experience of somebody’s day,” said Thomas Kloubert, of kfzteile24, Germany’s largest online automotive parts distributor that sponsored the massive survey.

“We hope that this study will act as a catalyst for those cities in the negative end of the ranking to invest in safer, cleaner, and more efficient roads, and consider how methods adopted by higher scoring cities can be utilized in their own locations,” he added.

Incidentally, the friendliest motorists are found in Helsinki, Finland — Calgary ranked middle-of-the-pack in road rage statistics. But driving in St. Petersburg, Russia? Simply put, it’s better to never stop. Or perhaps take the bus.