Public transport has become more expensive: reasons and solutions
The question
In many countries, public transport has become increasingly expensive. What are the reasons for this, and what solutions can you suggest?
How to answer it
Reasons should be economic and specific: fuel and energy costs, ageing infrastructure that needs renewing, wage costs in a labour-intensive service, and subsidies withdrawn after ridership fell. Solutions must answer those reasons — capped or zonal fares, subsidy tied to ridership targets, and the argument that transport is cheaper to subsidise than the congestion and pollution it prevents.
What moves the band
- Do not slide into complaining about prices; the task asks for causes, which are mostly accounting.
- Pairing each solution to its cause explicitly is the easiest Coherence mark on this prompt.
These are candidate recalls. These are questions reported by test-takers after their exams, not official or leaked IELTS material. Wording varies by test version, location and memory. Use them for timed practice — never as a prediction of what you will be asked.
Practise these next
Know the number. Now move it.
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