A six-month survey on traffic conditions during peak hours shows that travel times are worst in the mornings if you stay in Clementi and Bukit Timah.

Tampines dwellers on the other hand, enjoy the best morning traffic but suffer the worst evening rush hour traffic, taking almost double the time to travel from the city towards home, as compared to off-peak hours.

Clementi is the worst suburb for the morning commute because it takes nearly two and a half times longer (147 percent increase) during the busy period (8 to 9 am) as compared to times when there is no traffic (1 to 5am).

Bukit Timah, Bishan and Jurong West came in second, third and fourth worst for the average morning commute with traffic times more than doubling, compared to off peak. Bukit Timah and Clementi also came in second and third places for the worst affected commuters in the evening, reflecting the experience of their morning drive times.

Although it was an easier drive to the Changi Airport area relative to the rest of Singapore, journey times still increased by 44 percent over the evening rush hour.

The six-month survey from Sep 2010 to Feb 2011 was conducted by TomTom, the world's leading provider of in-car location and navigation products and service, with an end of enabling Singaporean drivers plan alternative routes and departure times and consider other options in order to reduce travelling time.

Valerie Cross, TomTom Asia Pacific PR Manager elaborated: "A large number of people in Singapore commute to and from the city centre every day. By highlighting areas worst affected by congestion, we hope to inspire and enable people to consider alternative routes and departure times."

The suburbs investigated were: Clementi, Bukit Timah, Bishan, Jurong West, Toa Payoh, Bedok, Hougang, Pasir Ris, Woodlands, Choa Chu Kang, Sengkang, Yishun, Ang Mo Kio, Changi Airport and Tampines. All these were affected by bad traffic during both the morning and afternoon busy periods.

Travel times from the suburbs were measured to and from a central point: Raffles Place, Singapore. Travel times in the two busiest periods, between 8-9 am and 5-7pm, were compared with the quietest period, which was between 1-5am.

Cross suggested that with roads in Singapore becoming increasingly congested, drivers could consider the use of TomTom IQ Routes technology to find alternative travel paths which would shorten their commute times.

"Data from our users provides historical speed profiles so we know what's actually happening on Singapore's roads every minute of every day and the speed the roads are moving. TomTom's IQ routes technology analyses this data and provides drivers with alternative routes, where a faster option exists. By looking at the real speeds on the roads, IQ Routes gives the smartest way, any time of day," Cross added.

IQ Routes is available on all TomTom GPS products, mobile applications and maps in Singapore.

These are the best and worst travel times, at a glance
Note: This data is based on historical traces by TomTom devices. The researched time period is 6 months: 1 September 2010 to 28 February 2011.