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Re: According to a recent survey of municipal services, the city`s streets [#permalink]
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Answer options for this question seems incorrect. Also underlined portion is different from option A. There is definitely some error in this question.

Bunuel :Please have a look.

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According to a recent survey of municipal services, the city`s streets [#permalink]
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cool16 wrote:
Could anybody explain me how if- then construction works in past tense , in context of above question
regards

I assume that you are just curious, because we do not need to know anything about conditionals to answer the parallelism question.

The non-underlined portions commit us to
-- an IF clause in past tense (if the administration improved), and
-- a RESULT or MAIN clause in the present conditional tense (could be)

When the IF clause has simple past tense, we have a Type 2 conditional.

Type 2 conditionals deal with a hypothetical or unlikely condition and its probable result.

If THIS thing happened,
Then THAT thing would (or could or might) happen
(or then THAT thing would be happening)

Only a Type 2 condition uses simple past tense in the IF clause.
That fact is our cue that could, must, might, or another modal auxiliary verb will be in the main THEN clause.
(I don't care whether we define would as a modal. Just know that it, too, is a very probable candidate for the main clause.)

The present conditional is formed this way:

would or modal + bare infinitive
(+ the infinitive of the main verb, without to)

Examples, IF clause in simple past, main clause in present conditional:

We might travel more often if we had more time.
If he was angry with me, I could not have known.
He could buy his school books if you lent him money.


Modals are allowed only in the main clause of a Type 2 conditional statement, and never in the if statement.

So we are locked into a Type 2 conditional by the sentence's structure in the non-underlined parts.
Further, modals (could, might, etc.)
(1) can show up in type 2 conditionals and
(2) can be split off from the main verb,
but that fact is not a function of the conditional dimension of the sentence.

We can split the verbs in a list because English allows ellipsis (omission of words). English uses reduced phrases and clauses all the time, not only in conditional statements. :) Hope that helps.
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Re: According to a recent survey of municipal services, the city`s streets [#permalink]
Could anybody explain me how if- then construction works in past tense , in context of above question
regards
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Re: According to a recent survey of municipal services, the city`s streets [#permalink]
cool16 wrote:
Could anybody explain me how if- then construction works in past tense , in context of above question
regards


If <simple past> then <simple past in case of fact/habit>/ <would verb in case of uncertainty>

We follow the above structure in case of simple past. Use of any other tense/structure is incorrect.

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Re: According to a recent survey of municipal services, the city`s streets [#permalink]
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kitipriyanka wrote:
Answer options for this question seems incorrect. Also underlined portion is different from option A. There is definitely some error in this question.

Bunuel :Please have a look.

Posted from my mobile device

Edited. Thank you.
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According to a recent survey of municipal services, the city`s streets [#permalink]
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cool16 wrote:
According to a recent survey of municipal services, the city`s streets could be cleaner, its fire code be better enforced, and its crime rate reduced if the current administration improved its management practices.


A. be better enforced, and its crime rate reduced
B. better enforced, and its crime rate reduced
C. could be better enforced, and it could reduce its crime rate
D. better enforced, and its crime rate could reduce
E. could be better enforced, and its crime rate reduce

cool16 , would you please check option E?
I think that the last word should be reduced, not reduce.
That elimination is much too easy, and the answer pattern suggests that E and B have the same last clause. Please check. Thanks.
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Re: According to a recent survey of municipal services, the city`s streets [#permalink]
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Re: According to a recent survey of municipal services, the city`s streets [#permalink]
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