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Information and IdeasHardEvidence that a bypass, not a recession, closed the shops

Information and Ideas practice question

An economist argues that the town's new bypass, rather than the recession that followed, caused the closure of shops on its high street.

Which finding, if true, would most directly support the claim?

  1. A. Closures on the high street began in the month the bypass opened, two years before the recession, while high streets in nearby towns without bypasses had no closures until the recession.Correct
  2. B. The recession was the deepest in forty years.
  3. C. The bypass carries 20,000 vehicles a day.
  4. D. Several of the closed shops had been open for decades.

Answer: A. Closures on the high street began in the month the bypass opened, two years before the recession, while high streets in nearby towns without bypasses had no closures until the recession.

Timing, and a comparison with towns that had no bypass.

Why the other answers are wrong

B. The recession was the deepest in forty years.
Supports the recession explanation, if anything.
C. The bypass carries 20,000 vehicles a day.
Traffic on the bypass is not evidence about the shops.
D. Several of the closed shops had been open for decades.
Age does not show the cause of closure.

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