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Information and IdeasVery hardFinding that weakens a claim about an intervention

Information and Ideas practice question

A council claims that its new traffic-calming humps reduced speeds on the estate, citing average speeds 8 km/h lower in the month after installation than in the month before.

Which finding, if true, would most directly weaken the council's claim?

  1. A. During the month after installation, the estate's main road was partly closed for gas works, and the remaining lane had a temporary 20 km/h limit enforced by a marshal.Correct
  2. B. Residents had asked for the humps.
  3. C. The humps are painted with reflective stripes.
  4. D. Speed humps have reduced speeds on other estates.

Answer: A. During the month after installation, the estate's main road was partly closed for gas works, and the remaining lane had a temporary 20 km/h limit enforced by a marshal.

A closure and an enforced temporary limit in the same month give another reason for the lower speeds.

Why the other answers are wrong

B. Residents had asked for the humps.
Residents' requests don't bear on the cause of the change.
C. The humps are painted with reflective stripes.
Irrelevant to the cause.
D. Speed humps have reduced speeds on other estates.
Other estates' results support the claim if anything.

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