If The Main City Thoroughfare Is Restricted To Commercial Vehicles GMAT Critical Reasoning

Question: If the main city thoroughfare is restricted to commercial vehicles weighing less than 2 tons, most of the commercial traffic would be forced to bypass the city using the city highway. Such a reduction in traffic will significantly reduce accident rates in the city.

The conclusion drawn above depends on which of the following assumptions?

  1. City highway would be as convenient as the main city thoroughfare for the vehicles that are forced to use the highway.
  2. Private vehicle drivers are more careful than commercial vehicle drivers and hence can be allowed to drive on the main city thoroughfare.
  3. Most traffic today consists of commercial vehicles weighing more than 2 tons.
  4. Commercial vehicles have a greater risk of becoming involved in accidents.
  5. Higher traffic congestion leads to higher risk of accidents.

Answer: E
Explanation
:

Given that, If the major city road were restricted to commercial vehicles under 2 tonnes, most commercial traffic would use the city highway to bypass the city. Traffic reduction will drastically lower city accident rates.

A: Incorrect
While this assumption might seem reasonable at first glance, it's not necessary for the argument's conclusion. The argument's main focus is on the reduction of accident rates by diverting commercial vehicles weighing less than 2 tons from the main city thoroughfare to the city highway. The convenience of the city highway is not directly relevant to the argument's logic that this diversion would lead to a reduction in accidents.

B: Incorrect
This assumption introduces a comparison between private and commercial vehicle drivers, but it doesn't directly address the argument's focus on reducing accident rates by restricting the main city thoroughfare to certain types of vehicles. The argument doesn't rely on whether private drivers are more careful; it's centered on the impact of the proposed restriction on commercial vehicles.

C: Incorrect
This assumption might not be necessary for the argument. The argument's focus is on reducing accident rates, not on the proportion of traffic that consists of commercial vehicles above 2 tons. It's possible that even if a small percentage of traffic is composed of such vehicles, their contribution to accidents could be significant enough to warrant the proposed restriction.

D: Incorrect
While this assumption is related to the argument, it doesn't directly address the impact of diverting commercial vehicles to the city highway. Even if commercial vehicles have a greater risk of accidents, it doesn't automatically mean that diverting them from the main city thoroughfare will result in a significant reduction in accidents overall.

E: Correct
The conclusion that restricting the main city thoroughfare to commercial vehicles weighing less than 2 tons will significantly reduce accident rates relies on the assumption that higher traffic congestion leads to a higher risk of accidents. This assumption supports the idea that by diverting commercial traffic to the city highway, where congestion might be higher, the overall accident rates would decrease due to reduced congestion on the main city thoroughfare.

“If the main city thoroughfare is restricted to commercial vehicles”– is a GMAT Critical question. To answer the question, a candidate can either find a piece of evidence that would weaken the argument or have logical flaws in the argument. GMAT critical reasoning tests the logical and analytical skills of the candidates. This topic requires candidates to find the argument's strengths and weaknesses or the logical flaw in the argument. The GMAT CR section contains 10 -13 GMAT critical reasoning questions out of 36 GMAT verbal questions.

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