Washington ? Drivers are spending less time stuck in rush-hour traffic for a second straight year, the first-ever two-year decline in congestion as high gas prices and the economic downturn force many Americans to change how they commute.

In individual cities, Los Angeles traffic is getting better but is still the worst in the nation. Washington’s is getting worse, now ranking second.

The average U.S. driver languished in rush-hour traffic for 36.1 hours in 2007, down from 36.6 hours in 2006 and a peak of 37.4 hours in 2005, according to a study being released today by the Texas Transportation Institute. Total wasted fuel also edged lower for the first time, from 2.85 billion gallons in 2006 to 2.81 billion, or roughly three weeks’ worth of gas per traveler.

The records go back a quarter-century, to 1982.

The last time traffic congestion had declined was in 1991 amid a spike in oil prices during the first Gulf War.

But it won’t last, assuming the economy recovers.