Columnist: The failure of bicyclists to obey traffic regulations is a causal factor in more than one quarter of the traffic accidents involving bicycles. Since inadequate bicycle safety equipment is also a factor in more than a quarter of such accidents,
bicyclists are at least partially responsible for more than half of the traffic accidents involving bicycles.The columnist’s reasoning is flawed in that it
The highlighted text is the conclusion(an inference rather). It is based on the two factors elaborated earlier, which seems to not overlap each other as projected.
(A) presumes, without providing justification, that
motorists are a factor in less than half of the traffic accidents involving bicycles - WRONG. It may be true but we aren't concerned about motorists as a factor.
(B) improperly infers the presence of a
causal connection on the basis of a
correlation - WRONG. A trap answer as it uses similar/same words as used in passage. More so for it says that the passage draws an inference which it actually does and for this reason, at first look, it looks a strong contender relative to other choices. Also, what correlation ?? There's none.
(C) fails to consider the possibility that
more than one factor may contribute to a given accident - CORRECT. In a way it says that factors can overlap, thus the inference may not be right.
(D) fails to provide the
source of the figures it cites - WRONG. We need not to have a source as it is not discussed nor that it would have had any significance.
(E) fails to consider that the
severity of injuries to bicyclists from traffic accidents can vary widely - WRONG. Severity like source of figures is irrelevant.
Answer C.