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AWA Score: 5 out of 6
I have used a GMAT AWA auto-grader to evaluate your essay.
Coherence and connectivity: 3/5
This rating corresponds to the flow of ideas and expressions from one paragraph to another. The effective use of connectives and coherence of assertive language in arguing for/against the argument is analyzed. This is deemed as one of the most important parameters.
Paragraph structure and formation: 4.5/5
The structure and division of the attempt into appropriate paragraphs are evaluated. To score well on this parameter, it is important to organize the attempt into paragraphs. Preferable to follow the convention of leaving a line blank at the end of each paragraph, to make the software aware of the structure of the essay.
Vocabulary and word expression: 5/5
This parameter rates the submitted essay on the range of relevant vocabulary possessed by the candidate basis the word and expression usage. There are no extra- points for bombastic word usage. Simple is the best form of suave!
Good Lucksheungcheng
The following appeared as part of an editorial in an industry newsletter:
“While trucking companies that deliver goods pay only a portion of highway maintenance costs and no property tax on the highways they use, railways spend billions per year maintaining and upgrading their facilities. The government should lower the railroad companies’ property taxes, since sending goods by rail is clearly a more appropriate mode of ground transportation than highway shipping. For one thing, trains consume only a third of the fuel a truck would use to carry the same load, making them a more cost-effective and environmentally sound mode of transport. Furthermore, since rail lines already exist, increases in rail traffic would not require building new lines at the expense of taxpaying citizens.” Discuss how well reasoned . . . etc.
In this editorial, the author argues that railroad companies should pay lower property taxes than trucking companies because train is a more cost effective way to transport goods than trucks. This claim is not convincing as it lacks of supports to justify the augment.
First, there are more trucks travelling on the highway every day than trains on the railroads. Charging a small amount of maintenance cost for each track actually add up to a high number in total, which might exceeds the the amount of taxes that railroad companies pay.
Second, the author claims that train is cost-effective and environmental friendly as it consumes less fuel than a truck. However, the author neglects the fact that train can transport goods to only fixed locations, where there are stations that trains can stop. If the destination is not close to any train stations, the goods have to transfer to another transportation until they reach the destination. It might costs extra time and money compared to shipping by trucks.
Third, the assumption about increasing rail traffic with the existing lines is problematic. It doesn’t take into account the current usage of the railroads. If the railroad traffic is already busy at the current stage, it will be difficult to add more trips to increase traffic. Also, the railroads was built a long time ago, and the existing lines might not travel to some new established cities, which demand for goods is growing. Without building new lines, trains simply can’t reach those locations, making trucks the only option to deliver goods to those areas.
For the reasons mentioned above, the argument is not sound or persuasive. The augment will be more convincing if the author can address the issues and provide more solid evidences to strengthen the assumptions.