Me da rabia perder tiempo en el tráfico, y a veces también me da un poco de envidia ver a la gente que va andando tranquila.

Spanish often expresses feelings with dar + noun:

• me da rabia = it makes me angry / it annoys me
• me da envidia = it makes me feel envy / I’m envious

Literally, me da rabia means something like it gives me anger.

So in this sentence:

• perder tiempo en el tráfico is the thing that causes the feeling
• ver a la gente... is also the thing that causes the feeling

This structure is very common in Spanish:

• Me da miedo volar.
• Me da pena verlo así.
• Me da vergüenza hablar en público.

It sounds very natural in Spanish, even though English usually uses a different structure.

Me means to me.

So:

• me da rabia = it gives anger to me
• me da envidia = it gives envy to me

This is an indirect object pronoun. Other forms would be:

• te da rabia = it annoys you
• le da rabia = it annoys him/her
• nos da rabia = it annoys us

Even though English does not say it gives anger to me, Spanish often does.

Because the grammatical subject is a whole action, expressed by an infinitive phrase:

• Perder tiempo en el tráfico me da rabia.
• Ver a la gente... me da envidia.

An infinitive phrase like perder tiempo en el tráfico behaves like a singular idea, so the verb is singular:

• da, not dan

You can think of it like:

• Wasting time in traffic annoys me.
• Seeing people walk calmly makes me a bit envious.

In both languages, the whole action is treated as one thing.

Because they name actions in a general way:

• perder tiempo = wasting time / to waste time
• ver a la gente... = seeing people / to see people

After expressions like me da rabia, me da miedo, me da pena, Spanish very often uses an infinitive to say what causes the feeling:

• Me da rabia esperar.
• Me da miedo conducir.
• Me da pena dejarlo.

So here:

• Me da rabia perder tiempo en el tráfico
• me da un poco de envidia ver a la gente...

are both perfectly natural structures.

Here rabia means something like:

• annoyance
• frustration
• irritation
• anger

It can be quite strong, but in everyday speech me da rabia is very common for situations that are simply frustrating or annoying, not necessarily extreme rage.

So in this sentence, Me da rabia perder tiempo en el tráfico is closer to:

• It annoys me to waste time in traffic
• It frustrates me to waste time in traffic

rather than something dramatic like I am furious.

En el tráfico means in traffic.

The noun tráfico here refers to road traffic, cars, congestion, etc. In Spanish, estar en el tráfico or en un atasco can both refer to being stuck in traffic, though they are not exactly identical:

• el tráfico = traffic in general
• un atasco = a traffic jam

So:

• perder tiempo en el tráfico = wasting time in traffic

This is a normal, natural phrase.

Because there are two separate feelings:

1. Me da rabia perder tiempo en el tráfico
2. a veces también me da un poco de envidia ver a la gente...

Spanish could sometimes avoid repetition in other contexts, but here repeating me da sounds natural and clear. It helps separate the two ideas:

• one thing annoys me
• another thing makes me a bit envious

It also mirrors how you might naturally speak in English:

• It annoys me..., and sometimes it also makes me a little envious...

Un poco de envidia means a little envy.

Spanish uses un poco de + noun very often:

• un poco de agua = a little water
• un poco de paciencia = a little patience
• un poco de miedo = a little fear
• un poco de envidia = a little envy

The de is just part of this structure. You cannot normally say un poco envidia.

So:

• me da un poco de envidia = it makes me a little envious

Because la gente refers to people, and Spanish usually uses the personal a before a direct object that is human or personified.

So:

• ver a la gente = to see people
• veo a María = I see María
• escucho a mi hermano = I listen to my brother

Even though la gente is grammatically singular, it refers to people, so the personal a is used.

La gente means people, but grammatically it is singular in Spanish.

That is why the sentence says:

• la gente que va andando tranquila

and not:

• la gente que van...

Because gente is singular.

This often confuses English speakers because English people is plural, but Spanish gente behaves like a singular collective noun, similar to the public or the crowd.

Ir + gerundio often expresses an action in progress, or the manner in which someone is going somewhere.

So:

• va andando = goes/is going on foot, walking
• anda = walks / is walking

In this sentence, la gente que va andando suggests people who are going along on foot, moving calmly along the street.

It gives a slightly more visual, flowing sense than just anda. It is a very natural way to describe people who are getting somewhere by walking.

Compare:

• Va andando al trabajo = He/She goes to work on foot.
• Va corriendo = He/She goes running / rushes along.
• Va hablando por teléfono = He/She goes along talking on the phone.

Because tranquila describes la gente.

Here, tranquila is an adjective, not an adverb. It means the people are calm, relaxed, unhurried.

So:

• la gente que va andando tranquila = the people who are walking along calmly / in a relaxed way

Spanish often uses an adjective where English might prefer an adverbial expression.

Also, tranquila is singular feminine because it agrees with la gente, which is grammatically singular feminine.

You could say tranquilamente in other kinds of sentences, but here tranquila sounds very natural because it describes the state of the people while they are walking.

Because it agrees with la gente, not with the actual number of individuals.

• gente is singular
• gente is feminine

So the adjective must be:

• tranquila

Just like:

• La gente está cansada.
• La gente es amable.
• La gente va tranquila.

Even though the meaning is plural in English, the grammar in Spanish is singular.

A veces means sometimes, and también means also.

Together, they show that this second feeling happens in addition to the first one, but not all the time:

• Me da rabia perder tiempo en el tráfico = this is the main reaction
• y a veces también me da un poco de envidia... = and sometimes, in addition, I also feel a bit envious

So it softens and qualifies the second idea.

Not necessarily. In everyday Spanish, me da un poco de envidia can be quite mild and even friendly.

Here it does not sound hostile. It means something like:

• I feel a little envious
• I kind of wish that were me
• I’m a bit jealous, in a mild way

Because the sentence says un poco de envidia, it sounds softer and more human, not bitter.

Yes. Spanish allows other ways to express similar ideas, for example:

• Me enfada perder tiempo en el tráfico...
• A veces envidio un poco a la gente que va andando tranquila.

But the original version sounds very natural and idiomatic because:

• me da rabia is a common way to express annoyance
• me da envidia is a common way to express envy

So the original sentence is a good example of very everyday Spanish.