samark wrote:
There is only one major road, Freeway Z, that links County X and County Y. The border of the two counties is primarily defined by a mountain range, over which the construction of new roads is severely restricted by environmental laws. A cost-effective solution to the problem of traffic congestion on Freeway Z is to build a commuter train tunnel through the mountain range. The successful implementation of this plan would cost far less than expanding the existing freeway and would also reduce the number of cars clogging the roads in both counties.
Which of the following, if true, could proponents of the plan above most appropriately cite as a piece of evidence for the soundness of their plan?
A. An effective commuter train tunnel between the counties would require major investment in mass transit within both counties.
B. The majority of all vehicles on the nation’s freeways are traveling from one state to another.
C. 60% of the cars on Freeway Z are driven by people who live in County Y and work in County X.
D. Many new freeways are being built in areas that are presently served by commuter trains.
E. A large proportion of the vehicles on Freeway Z are commercial trucks carrying transcontinental shipments.
OFFICIAL EXPLANATION
Since construction of new roads between County X and County Y is severely restricted, this argument claims that building a commuter train between the counties is a more cost-effective way to reduce congestion on Freeway Z than expanding the existing freeway or building a new one. This plan will work only if people currently driving on the freeway are likely to use the new commuter train. If the congestion is caused largely by people driving between the two counties, then some of these people would likely choose to use the train instead, decreasing traffic congestion on the freeway.
(A) The cost associated with funding necessary mass transit in both counties, in addition to the expense of the tunnel itself, is an argument against, not for, the proposed commuter train tunnel.
(B) This plan addresses a very specific situation: traffic between two counties on a certain freeway. Information about the nation’s freeways in general is not relevant to this argument.
(C) CORRECT. This statement shows that a majority of the cars on Freeway Z are driven by commuters. Commuters are more likely than other groups to use the proposed train tunnel; if so, fewer cars would travel on the freeway, and traffic congestion would decrease.
(D) This plan addresses a very specific situation: traffic between two counties on a certain freeway. New freeways that are being built elsewhere are not relevant to this argument. Even if this information were relevant to this situation, it would be an argument against the proposed commuter train tunnel, indicating that new freeway construction is necessary despite the existence of commuter trains.
(E) The information that Freeway Z is congested largely because of transcontinental shipments in commercial trucks, rather than commuters between the two counties, is an argument against the proposed commuter train tunnel. A large proportion of the vehicles on Freeway Z are commercial trucks, which will still travel that route even if the commuter train tunnel is built, so traffic congestion will be largely unaffected.
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