Singapore's road congestion improves according to Index from TomTom

According to The Straits Times, Singapore fell seven places in a global ranking for road congestion this year - but it is all for the better. It was ranked 45^th in a global index of 174 cities, which measures the severity of traffic congestion on roads during peak hours. Topping the list for having the worst jams is Mexico City, then Bangkok, Istanbul, Rio de Janeiro and Moscow.

Singapore was ranked 38^th last year in the index by Dutch-based navigation firm TomTom. It calculates congestion based on how much longer drivers spend on their commute when faced with congestion. Drivers here on average spent about 31 percent more time last year on the road during peak hours compared with non-peak hours. This was an improvement from 33 percent in 2014.

Traffic here ranked better than in places like New York, London and Shanghai, as well as Chinese cities Chengdu, Tianjin and Beijing. A total of 245 cities were surveyed, but only those with a population larger than 800,000 were ranked. Many Asian cities, including Seoul, Tokyo and Jakarta, were not included due to a lack of data.

Singapore is the only Asian city on the list, apart from Taipei - which saw a one percent dip - with a fall in congestion rates in 2015. Last year, drivers here spent, on average, 126 hours waiting in traffic, with commutes almost 1.5 times longer during morning and evening peak hours than during periods of smooth traffic.