The Future of Getting Around in Cities Reading Answers

Sep 30, 2025

The Future of Getting Around in Cities Reading Answers is an academic reading answers topic. The Future of Getting Around in Cities Reading Answers has a total of 13 IELTS questions in total. In the question set given, you have to state whether the statement is true, false or not given with the information given in the text. In the next question set, you have to classify the following descriptions as referring to Write the correct letter, A, B, or C. For the last question, you have to choose THREE letters, A-G. Which THREE of the following are advantages of the new transport system?

The IELTS Reading section is an essential part of the test that evaluates a candidate's comprehension and analysis of various passage types. You will work through several IELTS reading practice problems in this section that resemble actual test situations. These questions are designed to help you improve your ability to recognise essential concepts, extract particular facts, and make inferences. Practising these IELTS reading problems can help you get comfortable with the structure and increase your confidence for the exam, regardless of whether you are studying for the Academic or General Training module.

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The Future of Getting Around in Cities Reading Answers

Section 1

THE FUTURE OF GETTING AROUND IN CITIES -PRT vs RUF

THIS is ludicrous! 'We can talk to people anywhere in the world or fly to meet them in a few hours. We can even send probes to other planets. But when it comes to getting around our cities, we depend on systems that have scarcely changed since the days of Gottlieb Daimler. In recent years, the pollution belched out by millions of vehicles has dominated the debate about transport. The problem has even persuaded California - that home of car culture - to curb traffic growth. But no matter how green they become, cars are unlikely to get us around crowded cities any faster. And persuading people to use trains and buses will always be an uphill struggle. Cars, after all, are popular for very good reasons, as anyone with small children or heavy shopping knows.

So politicians should be trying to lure people out of their cars, not forcing them out. There's certainly no shortage of alternatives. Perhaps the most attractive is the concept known as personal rapid transit (PRT), independently invented in the US and Europe in the 1950s. The idea is to go to one of many stations and hop into a computer-controlled car, which can whisk you to your destination along a network of guideways. You wouldn't have to share your space with strangers, and with no traffic lights, pedestrians or parked cars to slow things down, PRT guideways can carry far more traffic, nonstop, than any inner city road.

It's a wonderful vision, but the odds are stacked against PRT for a number of reasons. The first cars ran on existing roads, and it was only after they became popular — and after governments started earning revenue from them-that a road network designed specifically for motor vehicles was built. With PRT, the infrastructure would have to come first-and that would cost megabucks. What's more, any transport system that threatened the car's dominance would be up against all those with a stake in maintaining the status quo, from private car owners to manufacturers and oil multinationals. Even if PRTs were spectacularly successful in trials, it might not make much difference. Superior technology doesn't always triumph, as the VHS versus Betamax and Windows versus Apple Mac battles showed.

But "dual-mode" systems might just succeed where PRT seems doomed to fail. The Danish RUF system envisaged by Palle Jensen, for example, resembles PRT but with one key difference: vehicles have wheels as well as a slot allowing them to travel on a monorail, so they can drive off the rail onto a normal road. Once on a road, the occupant would take over from the computer, and the RUF vehicle — the term comes from a Danish saying meaning to "go fast" — would become an electric car.

Build a fast network of guideways in a busy city centre and people would have a strong incentive not just to use public RUF vehicles, but also to buy their own dual-mode vehicle. Commuters could drive onto the guideway, sit back and read as they are chauffeured into the city. At work, they would jump out, leaving their vehicles to park themselves. Unlike PRT, such a system could grow organically, as each network would serve a large area around it and people nearby could buy into it. And a dual-mode system might even win the support of car manufacturers, who could easily switch to producing dual-mode vehicles.

Of course, creating a new transport system will not be cheap or easy. But unlike adding a dedicated bus lane here or extending the underground railway there, an innovative system such as Jensen's could transform cities. And it's not just a matter of saving a few minutes a day. According to the Red Cross, more than 30 million people have died in road accidents in the past century-three times the number killed in the First World War-and the annual death toll is rising. And what's more, the Red Cross believes road accidents will become the third-biggest cause of death and disability by 2020, ahead of diseases such as AIDS and tuberculosis. Surely we can find a better way to get around?

Questions 1-6

DO the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage

TRUE if the statement agrees with the information

FALSE if the statement contradicts the information

NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this

1. City transport developed slower than other means of communication.

Answer: TRUE

Supporting statement: We can talk to people anywhere in the world or fly to meet them in a few hours. We can even send probes to other planets. But when it comes to getting around our cities, we depend on systems that have scarcely changed since the days of Gottlieb Daimler.

Keywords: talk to people anywhere, fly to meet them, send probes

Keyword Location: Para 1, Lines 1-3

Explanation: The text contrasts the rapid advancement in global communication and space travel with city transport, which is described as using systems that have "scarcely changed" since the invention of the automobile, indicating a slower pace of development.

2. The pollution caused by city transport has been largely ignored.

Answer: FALSE

Supporting statement: In recent years, the pollution belched out by millions of vehicles has dominated the debate about transport.

Keywords: pollution, dominated the debate

Keyword Location: Para 1, Line 4

Explanation: The passage states that pollution has dominated the debate, meaning it has been a central and widely discussed issue, not ignored.

3. Most states in America have taken actions to reduce vehicle growth.

Answer: NOT GIVEN

Explanation: The text only mentions California as a state taking action. It provides no information about whether "most states in America" have done so.

4. Public transport is particularly difficult to use on steep hills.

Answer: NOT GIVEN

Explanation: The phrase "uphill struggle" is a metaphor meaning a difficult effort, not a literal statement about terrain. There is no information in the text about the difficulty of using public transport on steep hills.

5. Private cars are much more convenient for those who tend to buy a lot things during

shopping.

Answer: TRUE

Supporting statement: Cars, after all, are popular for very good reasons, as anyone with small children or heavy shopping knows.

Keywords: popular, good reasons, heavy shopping

Keyword Location: Para 1, Lines 8-9

Explanation: The text specifically cites carrying "heavy shopping" as one of the very good reasons for the popularity of cars, implying they are more convenient for this purpose than public transport.

6. Government should impose compulsory restrictions on car use.

Answer: FALSE

Supporting statement: So politicians should be trying to lure people out of their cars, not forcing them out.

Keywords: lure people out, not forcing them out

Keyword Location: Para 2, Line 1

Explanation: Instead of using mandatory limits (also known as "forcing"), the author suggests that politicians instead employ incentives (also referred to as " luring " ).

Questions 7-12

Classify the following descriptions as referring to Write the correct letter, A, B, or C.

A. PRT only

B. RUF only

C. both PRT and RUF

7. It is likely to be resisted by both individuals and manufacturers.

Answer: A

Supporting statement: What's more, any transport system that threatened the car's dominance would be up against all those with a stake in maintaining the status quo, from private car owners to manufacturers and oil multinationals

Keywords: transport system, threatened, private car owners, manufacturers

Keyword Location: Para 3, Lines 5-6

Explanation: This paragraph focuses solely on the difficulties PRT faces, noting that manufacturers and private owners would oppose it since it jeopardises the dominance of the vehicle. On the other hand, the RUF system is recommended to gain the backing of carmakers.

8. It can run at high speed in cities.

Answer: C

Supporting statement: For PRT: ...PRT guideways can carry far more traffic, nonstop, than any inner city road.

For RUF: Build a fast network of guideways in a busy city centre... The term comes from a Danish saying meaning to "go fast"...

Keywords: nonstop, fast network of guideways, go fast

Keyword Location: Para 2, Line 7; Para 4; Line 6; Para 5, Line 1

Explanation: Both systems are designed to use guideways to travel much faster than typical city traffic. PRT is nonstop, and RUF is associated with the idea of go fast and is intended for a fast network of guideways in the city centre.

9. It is not necessary to share with the general public.

Answer: C

Supporting statement: For PRT: You wouldn't have to share your space with strangers...

For RUF: Commuters could drive onto the guideway, sit back and read as they are chauffeured into the city.

Keywords: space with strangers, chauffeured

Keyword Location: Para 2, Line 6; Para 5, Line 3

Explanation: The PRT description explicitly states that one wouldn't share your space with strangers. The RUF system, though having public vehicles, also has privately owned ones, and the point of these "personal rapid transit" (PRT) and dual-mode (RUF) systems is to offer private, on-demand travel rather than sharing a large vehicle like a bus or train.

10. It is always controlled by a computer.

Answer: A

Supporting statement: The idea is to go to one of many stations and hop into a computer-controlled car

Keywords: computer-controlled car

Keyword Location: Para 2, Line 4

Explanation: According to the text, PRT is consistently described as a computer-controlled car.

11. It can run on existing roads.

Answer: B

Supporting statement: vehicles have wheels as well as a slot allowing them to travel on a monorail, so they can drive off the rail onto a normal road. Once on a road, the occupant would take over from the computer, and the RUF vehicle

Keywords: monorail, normal road

Keyword Location: Para 4, Lines 3-4

Explanation: According to the paragraph, RUF vehicles may "drive off the rail onto a normal road" and turn into "electric cars" once they are on the road. Because it can utilise both the existing road infrastructure and the newly constructed guideways.

12. It can be bought by private buyers.

Answer: B

Supporting statement: people would have a strong incentive not just to use public RUF vehicles, but also to buy their own dual-mode vehicle.

Keywords: buy their own, dual-mode vehicle

Keyword Location: Para 5, Line

Explanation: The RUF system is explicitly presented as being available for private ownership. The text does not mention the possibility of private ownership for the PRT system.

Question 13

Choose THREE letters, A-G. Which THREE of the following are advantages of the new transport system?

A. economy

B. space

C. low pollution

D. suitability for families

E. speed

F. safety

G. suitability for children

Answer: C, E, F

Supporting statement: For C (low pollution): "But no matter how green they become, cars are unlikely to get us around crowded cities any faster.

For E (speed): PRT: "PRT guideways can carry far more traffic, nonstop, than any inner city road." RUF: "Build a fast network of guideways in a busy city centre."

For F (safety): "According to the Red Cross, more than 30 million people have died in road accidents in the past century

Keywords: green, nonstop, fast network of guideways, road accidents,

Keyword Location: For C (low pollution): Para 1, Line 6

For E (speed): Para 2 & 5, Line 7 & 1

For F (safety): Para 6, Line 4

Explanation: C (low pollution): The passage frames the need for new transport by discussing pollution and later notes the RUF vehicle becomes an electric car, an inherently low-polluting option, and refers to the "green" aspect of transport.

E (speed): Both PRT and RUF are designed for nonstop travel on fast guideways, which is a core advantage over slow city traffic.

F (safety): The final paragraph makes a strong appeal for the new system based on the horrific death toll from road accidents, concluding that a "better way to get around" is needed—a direct reference to improving safety.

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