Read the following article from a website.
The Lethbridge transit commission is debating whether to give college students a much deeper discount on bus fares. Right now, students pay $2.70 a ride, only forty cents less than the regular adult fare. One of the city’s colleges has about 6,000 students, and roughly half of them drive to campus. Student bus ridership fell by about ten percent last year. The commission is expected to decide on a one-year pilot before the winter term begins in January.
Mbali Kotze, the college’s campus mobility planner, wants a bigger discount. “Forty cents will never get a part-time student out of her car,” she said. “When other cities cut student fares, ridership went up and the parking lots near campus emptied.” Kotze says the college could buy semester passes in bulk and add the cost to each student’s college fees. “That would cover a good part of the lost fare money,” Kotze said.
Hemi Larsen, who has managed the transit system’s budget for nine years, sees a real risk. “If every ride gets a deeper discount, the money runs out first on the night routes,” Larsen said. “Those buses already barely pay for themselves. Students would end up losing the last bus home.” He would rather sell a capped semester pass at a fixed price, so the budget stays predictable from month to month.
Taini Lussier, president of the student union, brought traffic counts from exam week that showed campus roads packed with cars. “Almost every one of those cars carries a single student who would rather ride the bus,” she said. “Price is the only thing stopping them.” Lussier, who drives to campus herself, wants a deeper discount, but she agrees that a semester pass could be the main product. Femke Kuipers, a city councillor, has one condition for any pilot. “The city must publish ridership and fare revenue every month,” Kuipers said. “If night service starts to suffer, we pull back right away,” she added.
Using the drop-down menu (▾), choose the best option according to the information given on the website.
At present, Taini Lussier is 2..
The author presents the decision as 3..
The main point of the article is that 4..
According to Larsen, the night routes 5..
The following is a comment by a visitor to the website page. Complete the comment by choosing the best option to fill in each blank.
AI explanationShows the answer. Tap to open.
Correct Answer: cheaper bus fares for college students
Why this is correct: The transit commission is debating a much deeper discount on bus fares for college students. Every speaker reacts to it.
Passage Reference: The Lethbridge transit commission is debating whether to give college students a much deeper discount on bus fares.
Tips: Ask what change is on the table. Choose the answer that names it in plain words.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a new parking lot near the college: Parking lots are mentioned, but nobody plans to build one.
- changes to the city’s night routes: Larsen worries about night routes, but no route changes are proposed.
- a vote on student union elections: Lussier leads the student union, but no union election is discussed.
Correct Answer: a student who drives to the college
Passage Reference: Lussier, who drives to campus herself, wants a deeper discount
Why this is correct: The reporter says Lussier drives to campus herself. So right now she is a student who drives to the college, not a bus rider.
Tips: Gather what the reporter tells you about Lussier, along with her quotes. Choose the option those lines show, and reject any they contradict.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a part-time worker at the transit office: Lussier is president of the student union. Nothing says she works for the transit office.
- a regular rider on the night buses: Lussier drives to campus herself, so she is not a regular bus rider.
- a planner who works for the college: The college’s planner is Kotze. Lussier leads the student union.
Correct Answer: one that has to be made quite soon
Passage Reference: The commission is expected to decide on a one-year pilot before the winter term begins in January.
Why this is correct: The reporter writes that the commission should decide before the winter term begins in January. So the choice has a deadline close at hand.
Tips: Set the quotes aside. Judge each option only by the sentences the reporter writes, not the speakers.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a matter of little importance: The reporter gives facts about falling ridership and busy roads. Nothing treats the matter as unimportant.
- a plan that students have already won: The commission has not decided yet. The reporter says a decision is still expected.
- a mistake that will empty the night buses: Larsen fears the night routes could suffer. The reporter never calls the plan a mistake.
Correct Answer: the idea has backing, but its cost worries some
Passage Reference: Hemi Larsen, who has managed the transit system’s budget for nine years, sees a real risk.
Why this is correct: Kotze and Lussier want a deeper discount. Larsen sees a real risk to the budget, and Kuipers wants the numbers watched. So the idea has support, but cost is a concern.
Tips: Run each option past Kotze, Larsen, Lussier and Kuipers. The answer has to fit the article as a whole, not one person’s quote.
Why the other options are wrong:
- students would ride the bus at any price: Lussier says price is what keeps students in their cars. So price does matter to them.
- the night routes have already been cut: Larsen fears the night routes could suffer later. The article never says any route has been cut.
- the college will pay every student’s fare: Kotze says bulk passes would cover a good part of the lost money, not every fare.
Correct Answer: barely pay for themselves now
Passage Reference: If every ride gets a deeper discount, the money runs out first on the night routes ... Those buses already barely pay for themselves.
Why this is correct: Larsen says the night buses already barely pay for themselves. That is why a deeper discount would hit them first.
Tips: Go through Larsen’s quoted sentences one by one. Choose the option that repeats one of them in plainer words, and reject anything he never says.
Why the other options are wrong:
- carry mostly college students: Larsen says students would lose the last bus home. He does not say most night riders are students.
- are used by very few riders: Larsen never says how many people ride at night. He talks about money.
- earn more than the day routes: Larsen says the night buses barely pay for themselves. So they do not earn more.
Correct Answer: $2.70
Passage Reference: students pay $2.70 a ride
Why this is correct: Right now, students pay $2.70 a ride.
Tips: This blank needs the price of one ride. Read the numbers in the amount carefully.
Why the other options are wrong:
- $1.70: Students pay a dollar more than this.
- $2.07: The numbers are the same, but the order is wrong.
- $7.20: This is far more than students pay for one ride.
Correct Answer: half
Passage Reference: roughly half of them drive to campus
Why this is correct: About 6,000 students attend the college, and roughly half of them drive to campus.
Tips: Find how many of the college’s students come by car. The article gives a share, not a number.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a third: The article says about half.
- two in five: The article says about half, not two in five.
- three in five: The article says about half, not three in five.
Correct Answer: college fees
Passage Reference: add the cost to each student’s college fees
Why this is correct: Kotze says the college could buy passes in bulk and add the cost to each student’s college fees.
Tips: Read the planner’s idea for bulk passes. Find where she says the cost would be added.
Why the other options are wrong:
- parking permits: Kotze does not mention parking permits.
- union dues: Kotze does not mention union dues.
- residence rent: Kotze does not mention rent.
Correct Answer: semester pass
Passage Reference: He would rather sell a capped semester pass at a fixed price
Why this is correct: Larsen would rather sell a capped semester pass at a fixed price.
Tips: The commenter means the budget manager. Find the product he prefers to sell.
Why the other options are wrong:
- weekly pass: Larsen wants a semester pass, not a weekly one.
- annual pass: Larsen wants a semester pass, not a yearly one.
- ten-ride card: Larsen does not talk about a ride card.
Correct Answer: every month
Passage Reference: The city must publish ridership and fare revenue every month
Why this is correct: Kuipers says the city must publish ridership and fare revenue every month.
Tips: Read the councillor’s condition for the pilot. Find how often she wants the numbers shared.
Why the other options are wrong:
- every week: Kuipers asks for numbers less often than weekly.
- every term: Kuipers asks for numbers more often than once a term.
- once a year: Once a year is much less often than Kuipers wants.
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