Some large European cities, such as Paris and Barcelona,

Question

Some large European cities, such as Paris and Barcelona, have implemented bicycle sharing programs that allow people, for a small fee, to obtain a bike at any of hundreds of locations and drop it off near their destination. Currently, most large U.S. cities face congestion with cars and taxis, have few bicycle lanes, and discourage the locking of bicycles to poles and fences. Therefore, until the culture of cities becomes less hostile to bicyclists, a wide scale program will not be a viable form of alternative transportation.
 
Which of the following would it be most useful to determine in evaluating the argument? 
(A) Whether an sharp increase in the number of bicyclists in U.S. cities would change attitudes toward bicyclists 
(B) Whether U.S. who drive cars know how to operate bicycles 
(C) Whether major U.S. cities have plans to expand the availability of bicycle lanes in downtown areas 
(D) Whether the number of people interested in traveling by bicycle is greater in U.S. than in Europe 
(E) Whether small U.S. cities are more friendly to bicyclists than large U.S. cities

OA Later !

dwivedys · Answer

C?

amp0201 · Answer

I think the correct answer choice is B.

(A) Whether an sharp increase in the number of bicyclists in U.S. cities would change attitudes toward bicyclists.
  -- A change in attitude is too broad term Hence it cannot be used to evaluate the argument. Hence A not a correct answer choice.

(B) Whether U.S. who drive cars know how to operate bicycles
  -- This should be correct statement to evaluate the argument. If we know this, then we can evaluate the argument. Thus if US car drivers know to drive bicycle, then and then only less hostile behavior will be helpful to bring up the alternative plan of transportation.

(C) Whether major U.S. cities have plans to expand the availability of bicycle lanes in downtown areas
  -- 'downtown' -- too specific. Hence cannot be a correct answer choice.

(D) Whether the number of people interested in traveling by bicycle is greater in U.S. than in Europe
  -- Irrelevant. Hence cannot be a correct answer choice.

(E) Whether small U.S. cities are more friendly to bicyclists than large U.S. cities 
  -- Even if small US cities are friendly, we cannot apply it to big cities. Hence cannot be a correct answer choice.

OA please. Thank You.

Thanks,
Akhil M.Parekh

dwivedys · Answer

OA?

tryingharder · Answer

A

gkslko101 · Answer

A for me.

If a sharp increase in the number of bicyclists can't change the attitude of native Americans towards bicyclists, it will discourage the bicyclists further and the Wide Scale program will be a failure.

The 'sharp increase' is somehow driving me crazy. Gurus kindly pour in your suggestions.

KissGMAT · Answer

OA is A.

Explanation as per the guide

Answer: A
This is an "evaluate the argument" question. In a sense, we're looking for an assumption, just in a different format that in assumption questions. This argument claims that, because U.S. cities are not bicycle-friendly, U.S. cities cannot implement European-style bicycle sharing programs. Each choice has two possible outcomes ("whether" it is the case, or it is not the case), so we're looking for a choice in which one of the outcomes would have an impact on the argument. Consider each in turn:

(A) This is correct. If an increase in the number of bicyclists could change attitudes toward bicyclists, a bicycle-sharing program may well solve the problem suggested in the argument. 
(B) This is not important; it doesn't matter if people (car-drivers or not) can operate bicycles if cities are too hostile to bicyclists. 
(C) This is outside the scope. The problem described in the passage is not the lack of bicycle lanes, it is the culture of U.S. cities. 
(D) As with (B), this is not relevant, since it doesn't address the issue of hostility to bicyclists. 
(E) This comparison is outside of the scope, as we're concerned only with the viability of bicycle-sharing programs in large U.S. cities.

Some large European cities, such as Paris and Barcelona,

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