The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word GRIDLOCK
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More clues leading to the result GRIDLOCK
- Arm wrapped around free jam
- Jam finally reaching clear section of waterway
- Taking pistol round, clear traffic jam
- Damaged rig, refrigerated, reversing, by end of block — traffic jams result
- Hard work removing new bit of hair in jam
- Gun full of rust, it did initially jam
- Jam? Little good with obstacle holding lid tight
- One’s frustratingly stuck with this crossword design on Yale?
- Hair on grating causing a blockage
- Jam is what you’re filling with hair
Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "traffic jams" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case traffic jams = gridlock.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does GRIDLOCK mean?
GRIDLOCK noun- A condition of total, interlocking traffic congestion on the streets or highways of a crowded city, in which no one can move because everyone is in someone else's way.
- On a smaller scale: the situation in which cars enter a signal-controlled intersection too late during the green light cycle, and are unable to clear the intersection (due to congestion in the next block) when the light turns red, thus blocking the cross traffic when it's their turn to go. Repeated at enough intersections, this phenomenon can lead to citywide gridlock.
- (by extension) any paralysis of a complex system due to severe congestion, conflict, or deadlock.
- To cause traffic congestion