By the 1850s London's centre was jammed with horse traffic, and railways weren't allowed into the City. Charles Pearson's plan became the Metropolitan line, the world's first underground railway (1863), built by 'cut and cover' under existing roads. Crossing the centre needed deep tunnels and electric trains, so the City & South London (1890) and the 'Tuppenny Tube' (1900) followed.
The notes (1-6) cover A to D in order. TRUE / FALSE / NOT GIVEN (7-13) picks up at E and runs to the end of the long final paragraph, G.
Note completion (ONE WORD ONLY)
Questions 1-6
How to attack this block: The note headings follow the passage's own story: the problem, the proposed solution, the construction. Each answer is a noun close to its paraphrase: what grew quickly, where the poor would be rehoused, who backed Pearson, what the company struggled to raise, where the hostile articles ran, and what went on top of the tunnel.
Question 1
Answer: populationParagraph A, first sentence
What grew quickly in London in the first half of the 1800s?
In the first half of the 1800s, London's population grew at an astonishing rate
Question says → Passage says
increased rapidlygrew at an astonishing rate
between 1800 and 1850In the first half of the 1800s
Why: 'Between 1800 and 1850' is just 'the first half of the 1800s' in numbers, and 'increased rapidly' swaps in for 'grew at an astonishing rate'. The gap needs a noun after 'The', and the thing that grew is the population.
The trap: 'Traffic' and 'passengers' also go up in Paragraph A, but the notes list the horse-drawn streets as a separate point. The first sentence is the one that matches the time frame.
Question 2
Answer: suburbsParagraph B, third sentence
Where did Pearson want to move the poor people living in the slums?
His idea was to relocate the poor workers who lived in the inner-city slums to newly constructed suburbs
Question says → Passage says
move peoplerelocate the poor workers
better housing in thenewly constructed suburbs
Why: 'Move' is 'relocate', and the people are the slum workers. The note says where the better housing is, and Pearson's answer is the new suburbs. Keep the plural 's'.
The trap: 'Slums' is in the same sentence, but that's where people lived before, not where they were going. Reading the direction of the move carefully saves you here.
Question 3
Answer: businessmenParagraph B, fourth sentence
Who supported Pearson's idea?
Pearson's ideas gained support amongst some businessmen and in 1851 he submitted a plan to Parliament.
Question says → Passage says
A number ofsome
agreed with Pearson's ideaPearson's ideas gained support amongst
Why: 'Gained support amongst' means those people agreed with him. The gap follows 'A number of', so it must be a plural noun: businessmen.
The trap: Parliament appears straight after, but Parliament rejected his plan. Agreeing is the opposite of what Parliament did.
Question 4
Answer: fundingParagraph C, third sentence
What did the new company struggle to get at first?
The organisation had difficulty in raising the funding for such a radical and expensive scheme
Question says → Passage says
initially had problemshad difficulty in
getting the ___ neededraising the funding
Why: 'Had problems getting' is a direct paraphrase of 'had difficulty in raising'. The thing being raised is the funding, and it's one word, so it fits the limit.
The trap: You might reach for 'support' from Paragraph B, but that was Pearson's earlier backing from businessmen. The company's problem in C was money.
Question 5
Answer: pressParagraph C, third sentence
Where did the negative articles appear?
not least because of the critical articles printed by the press
Question says → Passage says
Negative articlesthe critical articles
appeared in theprinted by the
Why: 'Negative' matches 'critical', and articles that are 'printed by' someone appear in it. The answer is the word after 'printed by the'.
The trap: 'Objectors' starts the next sentence, but objectors are people, not a place where articles appear.
Question 6
Answer: soilParagraph D, last sentence
What was put on top of the finished tunnel?
finally a brick arch was added to create a tunnel. A two-metre-deep layer of soil was laid on top of the tunnel
Question says → Passage says
completion of the brick archfinally a brick arch was added
the tunnel was covered witha two-metre-deep layer of… was laid on top of the tunnel
Why: The note follows the building steps in order. Once the brick arch was in, a layer of soil went on top before the road was rebuilt. 'Covered with' = 'laid on top of'.
The trap: 'Brick' is the obvious wrong answer. The arch itself was brick, so the covering is the next thing mentioned: soil. 'Timber' was only a temporary support for the trench walls.
TRUE / FALSE / NOT GIVEN
Questions 7-13
How to attack this block: Three FALSEs each contradict one clear fact: the Metropolitan was the world's first, the train windows were just below the roof, and the City & South London didn't make a profit. The NOT GIVENs add something the passage never measures: passenger forecasts and punctuality.
Question 7
Answer: FALSEParagraph E, first sentence
Did other countries have underground railways before the Metropolitan line?
The Metropolitan line, which opened on 10 January 1863, was the world's first underground railway.
Question says → Passage says
Other countries had built… beforethe world's first underground railway
Why: If the Metropolitan was the world's first, nobody could have built one before it. That's a direct contradiction, so FALSE.
The trap: Some people say NOT GIVEN because no other country is named. You don't need one: 'world's first' rules them all out.
Question 8
Answer: NOT GIVENParagraph E, second sentence
Did more people travel on day one than had been expected?
On its first day, almost 40,000 passengers were carried between Paddington and Farringdon
Question says → Passage says
on the first dayOn its first day
Why: You get the actual number for day one, almost 40,000, but no forecast at all. Without a prediction there's nothing to compare it with, so NOT GIVEN.
The trap: The figures sound impressive, and 9.5 million journeys in a year sounds like a success. But 'more than predicted' needs a prediction, and there isn't one.
Question 9
Answer: TRUEParagraph F, last sentence
Did the ventilation shafts fail to stop the pollution in the tunnels?
However, smoke and fumes remained a problem, even though ventilation shafts were added to the tunnels.
Question says → Passage says
pollution in the tunnelssmoke and fumes
failed to preventremained a problem, even though
Why: 'Even though' tells you the shafts were added and the problem stayed anyway. Smoke and fumes are pollution, so the shafts failed to prevent it. TRUE.
The trap: The special locomotives with water tanks come in the same paragraph and can make you think the problem was solved. 'However' at the start of this sentence says it wasn't.
Question 10
Answer: TRUEParagraph G, third and fourth sentences
Did central London need a different method from 'cut and cover'?
The 'cut and cover' method of construction was not an option in this part of the capital. The only alternative was to tunnel deep underground.
Question says → Passage says
A different approach… was requirednot an option… The only alternative was to tunnel deep underground
London's central areathis part of the capital / did not cross the capital's centre
Why: 'This part of the capital' points back to the centre that the old lines didn't cross. 'Not an option' plus 'the only alternative' means another approach was needed: deep tunnels. TRUE.
Question 11
Answer: FALSEParagraph G, middle
Were the windows on the City & South London trains at eye level?
The carriages were narrow and had tiny windows just below the roof because it was thought that passengers would not want to look out at the tunnel walls.
Question says → Passage says
at eye leveljust below the roof
Why: The windows were 'just below the roof', which is above a passenger's eyes, on purpose, because nobody was expected to want to look at tunnel walls. That contradicts 'eye level', so FALSE.
The trap: 'Tiny' and 'narrow' may make you focus on size. The statement is about position, and position is given.
Question 12
Answer: FALSEParagraph G, second half
Did the City & South London Railway make money?
Although the City & South London Railway was a great technical achievement, it did not make a profit.
Question says → Passage says
a financial successdid not make a profit
Why: 'Did not make a profit' is the opposite of a financial success. FALSE.
The trap: 'A great technical achievement' sounds like success, and that's the trap. It was a success in engineering, not in money.
Question 13
Answer: NOT GIVENParagraph G, near the end
Were the 'Tuppenny Tube' trains nearly always on time?
Then in 1900, the Central London Railway, known as the 'Tuppenny Tube', began operation using new electric locomotives. It was very popular
Question says → Passage says
Trains on the 'Tuppenny Tube'the Central London Railway, known as the 'Tuppenny Tube'
Why: You learn when it opened, what powered it and that it was popular. Punctuality is never mentioned, so NOT GIVEN.
The trap: 'Very popular' and 'new electric locomotives' make it sound reliable, but popular doesn't mean punctual. The unreliable power supply belongs to the earlier City & South London line.
A two-metre layer of soil went on top of the tunnel before the road was rebuilt. 'Brick' is wrong, because the arch itself is brick.
Words from this passage worth keeping
congested(A)
so full of traffic that movement is slow
advocates(B)
people who publicly support an idea
relocate(B)
move people to a new place to live
radical(C)
completely new and very different from what existed
persisted(C)
kept going despite difficulties
minimise(D)
keep something as small as possible
condensed(F)
turned from steam back into water
confined(G)
small and enclosed, with little room
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The rest of Cambridge 17 Test 1
Passage 1 · Questions 1-13 · You're hereThe development of the London underground railway
