Name: Date: reading (10 marks) 1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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WRITING TASK 4 MODEL ANSWER

Describe the traffic problems in this city and outline the advantages and disadvantages of 

the suggested solutions. Which of these solutions is the most suitable?

The map shows the traffic problems of a busy city.

Many of the people in this city have to travel to their offices and schools on the other side of the river 

from where they live, so the city suffers from very bad traffic congestion. This makes people late, 

wastes fuel and adds to pollution in the city. The main problem is that there is only one main road. The 

problem is made worse because there is only one bridge. To make matters worse, there is a junction 

near the housing area where traffic builds up in the morning when people commute to work and take 

their children to school and in the evening when workers return home and parents collect their children.

One solution is to build more bridges over the river. However, the cost would be prohibitive and they 

might also become congested. 

Another solution is to build a railway line from the residential area to the city centre. This would reduce 

traffic, but it would be expensive to build, as it would also require the building of a new bridge. 

A slightly cheaper solution is to run a Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) system of electric cars to and around 

the city. Such systems are computer-controlled to ensure that not all cars arrive at the same junction at 

the same time. Although they are expensive to set up, the running costs are minimal. 

To sum up, the main problem with this city is the bottleneck caused by the single road, the lack of 

bridges and the congestion and pollution these cause. Overall, a Personal Rapid Transit system is 

the best solution to this problem. It would both reduce congestion and be the most environmentally 

friendly choice. Unless a PRT system is installed soon, city life will become impossible. 

ADDITIONAL WRITING TASK 4

Compare and contrast the advantages and disadvantages of public and private transport.