In an effort to reduce traffic congestion in downtown Whitmore during

Question

In an effort to reduce traffic congestion in downtown Whitmore during the morning rush-hour, the city's transportation commission constructed a new highway connecting Whitmore directly with its northern suburbs. But since the completion of the highway, traffic congestion in downtown Whitmore has actually increased during the morning rush-hour.

Which of the following, if true, would best explain the increase in traffic congestion?

(A) More commuters to downtown Whitmore come from the southern suburbs than from the northern suburbs.

(B) Because the new highway gives downtown Whitmore residents easy access to the northern suburbs, several new businesses have opened adjacent to the highway in the northern suburbs.

(C) Many who live and work in the northern suburbs have begun to use the highway as a way to access downtown Whitmore's nightlife.

(D) The convenience of the new highway has encouraged many commuters from the northern suburbs to drive to work in downtown Whitmore rather than take public transportation.

(E) The majority of people who work in downtown Whitmore also live in downtown Whitmore.

This is a  CR Butler Question

Check the links to other Butler Projects: 
 
   Data Sufficiency Butler 
   Problem Solving Butler  
   Sentence Correction Butler  
   Reading Comprehension Butler  
   Integrated Reasoning Butler

cdrectenwald · Answer

Imo I like option D

This option provides a plausible explanation for the increased traffic congestion. If the new highway has made it easier for people to drive to downtown Whitmore, it could have led to an increase in the number of cars on the road as people switch from public transportation to driving, thereby increasing congestion.

Posted from my mobile device

Vineetbansal · Answer

I like option D as all other options are out of context, D I guess is the most suitable one

Bunuel · Answer

VERITAS PREP OFFICIAL SOLUTION:

In this "Explain the Paradox" problem, it is critical to identify the specifics of the "surprising fact." What's surprising here is that traffic congestion in downtown Whitmore has actually increased during the morning rush-hour despite the construction of a new highway that might have been thought to decrease it. Answer choice D is the only choice that explains why it may have increased (as opposed to staying the same or not decreasing as much as hoped) - it's that the highway has encouraged more people to drive, so there are more vehicles on the road to add to potential congestion.

Note that the incorrect answer choices might seem relevant, but all are off because they miss the specificity in language of the "surprising fact." Choice A, for example, suggests that a better plan would have been to build a highway in the opposite direction because more congestion comes from the south than from the north. But that doesn't mean that the existing highway wouldn't have at least reduced congestion somewhat, and the surprise is that congestion increased, not that it didn't decrease as much as one would have hoped.

Choice B is also a bit off due to specificity in language: the increase in congestion is in downtown Whitmore, but B talks about why there might be more congestion in the suburbs.

Choice C talks about nightlife, reasons that there might be more traffic coming into Whitmore in the evenings. But, again, the "surprising fact" is specific to the morning rush-hour, so C misses the scope.

And choice E is similar to A, showing why traffic may not have decreased much - most people live in the city and wouldn't need to use the new highway - but misses the scope of the paradox, that traffic actually increased. The correct answer is D.

In an effort to reduce traffic congestion in downtown Whitmore during

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards

GMAT Critical Reasoning (CR) Questions

In an effort to reduce traffic congestion in downtown Whitmore during

Prep Toolkit

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards