It takes marketing manager Vilasani Raja 90 minutes to get from her home in Segar Road in Bukit Panjang to her favourite shopping haunt, Orchard Road.
She takes the feeder bus service to Fajar LRT station, from where she rides to Choa Chu Kang. Then, she switches to a train on the North-South Line.
She reaches Orchard station after 15 stops.
Ms Vilasani, 26, said of her route: 'It's not the most convenient option. Actually, none of my options are convenient at all.'
She has often had to take a taxi 'in order to save time'.
But relief will come soon - the Land Transport Authority (LTA) announced yesterday that one of the stations on the Downtown Line's (DTL) second phase will be just 10 minutes away from Ms Vilasani's home.
From LTA estimates, Ms Vilasani will take less than 45 minutes to get from Petir MRT station to Orchard station.
Besides Petir station, other station locations revealed yesterday include Stevens, Rochor and Hillview.
With the new line - its first phase is targeted for completion in 2013 - a trip from Tampines to Chinatown which would now take 55 minutes by bus and MRT will take only 45 minutes, according to the LTA.
The second phase of the DTL is slated for completion in 2015.
LTA's chief executive, Mr Yam Ah Mee, hopes that these 'significant time savings will make public transport a more viable commuting choice'.
Besides the DTL, the LTA also announced that the Circle Line's first phase - from Bartley to Marymount - will be the first to be launched in mid-2009.
Needless to say, for Ms Vilasani, both the new lines are a welcome relief. 'Taxi rides are getting amazingly expensive.'
