V39-17

Question

A city government plans to remove the free parking spaces in downtown areas to encourage the use of public transportation. If this change is implemented, drivers who currently park downtown for free would have to pay for parking. Consequently, many downtown businesses are concerned that their customer traffic would decrease significantly, leading to reduced sales.
 
The argument above assumes which of the following?

A. Other incentives or conveniences are insufficient to keep the same number of customers visiting downtown businesses.
B. Downtown businesses depend solely on customers who drive and park downtown for the majority of their sales.
C. The primary reason for removing free parking is to generate additional revenue from paid parking spaces.
D. Customers who currently use the free parking are likely to visit downtown businesses less often if they have to pay for parking.
E. The city should provide additional public transportation options to compensate for the removal of free parking spaces.

Bunuel · Answer

Official Solution:

A city government plans to remove the free parking spaces in downtown areas to encourage the use of public transportation. If this change is implemented, drivers who currently park downtown for free would have to pay for parking. Consequently, many downtown businesses are concerned that their customer traffic would decrease significantly, leading to reduced sales.
 
The argument above assumes which of the following?

A. Other incentives or conveniences are insufficient to keep the same number of customers visiting downtown businesses.
B. Downtown businesses depend solely on customers who drive and park downtown for the majority of their sales.
C. The primary reason for removing free parking is to generate additional revenue from paid parking spaces.
D. Customers who currently use the free parking are likely to visit downtown businesses less often if they have to pay for parking.
E. The city should provide additional public transportation options to compensate for the removal of free parking spaces.

(A) Incorrect. We do not know about other incentives or what this statement refers to. Other incentives may or may not be insufficient to keep the same number of people visiting. However, this statement is irrelevant and outside of the scope. Eliminate.
 
(B) Incorrect. This answer suggests that all revenue for downtown businesses comes from drivers, but this statement tells us nothing about the likelihood of drivers driving if they have to pay for parking. Without this additional detail, we can deny this assumption, and the argument would still stand. This is a partial assumption only. In contrast, the correct answer/assumption would say that downtown businesses depend solely on the customers who drive and those customers will not be driving if they have to pay for parking because if the businesses depend on customers who drive and those customers continue driving, then there is no problem. Also, it is likely too extreme of an assumption/statement as people traveling by bus or foot may also be shopping.
 
(C) Incorrect. Knowing the reason for the parking fee is not relevant to the concerns of the downtown businesses. Irrelevant. Eliminate.
 
 (D) Correct Answer:  This is the correct assumption because the argument depends on the behavior change of customers who would have to start paying for parking; if this change doesn't reduce their visits, the businesses wouldn't necessarily see reduced traffic. This passes the negation test as the assumption the argument depends on. Notice in contrast to (B), this answer choice addresses both aspects: 1) many customers are drivers and 2) Customers/drivers are less likely to visit if they have to pay for parking.
 
(E) Incorrect. This answer choice introduces a potential solution rather than an assumption and thus is an incorrect assumption/answer. Eliminate.

Answer: D

saumitrag · Answer

I did not quite understand the solution. I dont understand why option A isnt the right one. When i try to negate it, it seems to be the right assumption

hr1212 · Answer

You’ve raised a really interesting point,  saumitrag , and it touches on a subtle nuance that often appears in GMAT Critical Reasoning. The test is known for offering answer choices that sound almost right but include a hidden catch. In this argument, the central concern is that introducing parking fees might reduce customer traffic and harm business revenues, so it’s likely that the correct assumption will directly address that chain.

Option A introduces broader language like “other incentives” and “same number,” which opens up multiple ways it could fail. When you negate A, it does seem tempting because if other incentives are sufficient, then businesses shouldn’t worry, right? But the key is in the phrasing: it talks about the same number of customers, not the same type of customers. Even if new customers replace the old ones, they may not spend the same, which could still hurt revenue.

So while A might look like a potential weakener, it isn’t strictly necessary for the argument to hold, unlike D, which directly addresses the assumed behavioral shift in existing customers.

bb · Answer

A is largely outside of the scope with some random new incentives or benefits (what those are, nobody knows), so if you negate an irrelevant choice, it will still make the argument work... because it was irrelevant to start with. So before negating left and right, figure out if it is worth negating something.

consequunturminus · Answer

I don’t quite agree with the solution. Both A and D seems like correct option and it creates confusion even with negation way is this correct answer choice

hr1212 · Answer

Hi consequunturminus , I know this is a bit nuanced, but I have tried explaining the difference in option A and D in the post above - https://gmatclub.com/forum/v39-440615.html#p3635112

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