READING PASSAGE 2

You should spend about 20 minutes on questions 15-27 which are based on Reading passage 2 below.

London's cycle hire scheme

A

London is a 'world city': one of the most important economic and financial hubs in the world. It has a population of around eight million people and contains hundreds of iconic buildings which are recognized the world over. London receives around 20 million visitors each year, a large proportion from overseas, who mingle with further millions of people who travel into the city from a wide area to work in the central area. It is frequently rated as providing the most satisfying 'cultural experience' for visitors to any city.

B

One of the challenges involved in managing (and living in) such a huge city is the ability to move people efficiently around it, for the purposes of work and leisure, and at reasonable cost. The London black cab is one response to this problem, but it also contributes to the number of vehicles that are on the roads. The much quoted result of millions of daily vehicle movements is a very low average speed for traffic on London's roads and frequent congestion problems.

C

Many cities have taken steps to reduce the amount of traffic on the roads by adopting a range of measures which can broadly be described as either 'carrots' or 'sticks': those which either promote, or discourage certain activity. London has already been forced into trying a number of measures to reduce traffic congestion. These have included:

Traffic management systems which included the world's first traffic light. It was installed outside the Houses of Parliament in 1868 to reduce congestion in this area.
An underground system which was the first in the world. The first section opened in 1863, and the network is still developing. Since 2003, it has been managed byTransport for London. The classic LondonTube map forms part of the city's cultural heritage, and has been much copied and adapted elsewhere.
The Cross Rail development: due to provide high frequency rail services through two new tunnels under Central London from 2017.
The congestion charging system - introduced in 2003, and extended in 2007 - charges many motorists (there are some exemptions) £10 to enter the central charging zone between 7 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday to Friday.
The Oyster card - an automated charging system which speeds up the use of public transport using a specially chipped card, which can be pre-charged with 'credit'.

D

The latest solution is the Barclays London Cycle Hire Scheme. In 2010, London joined a growing list of cities that had turned to the bicycle for a possible solution to traffic congestion. Cities like Amsterdam have long since been associated with bicycles. Other cities that already have cycle hire schemes include Copenhagen and Barcelona. In Paris, the system is known as the Velib scheme, a word which merges the word for bicycle with freedom. It is funded by advertising. The London scheme was launched on the 30th July 2010 with an initial total of 5,000 bikes spread around 315 locations, with plans for further extensions. The bikes are fairly robust so that they can withstand the knocks of daily use. They are fitted with dynamo-powered LED lights, have three gears, a chain guard and a bell. Each bike is also fitted with a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) chip, so that its location can be tracked. The bikes have puncture-proof tyres and are regularly checked over for mechanical faults.

E

It is hoped that people will experience London in a more direct way. Instead of descending into the earth, they will cycle the streets and thus gain 'a different view' of London and improve their own mental maps of the city. They will also be getting exercise, which in an age of soaring obesity rates can only be a good thing, can't it?
Enough reading, time for you to get out there and start pedalling!

Glossary
the Tube: the underground railway system in London

QUESTIONS 15-18

Choose one of the endings (i-viii) from the List of Endings to complete each sentence below. The information in the completed sentences should accurately reflect what is said in the text.
NB There are more endings (i-viii) than sentence beginnings, so you will not need to use them all. You may use each ending once only.

15. London
(has already been forced . . . to reduce traffic congestion)

16. London traffic
(a very low average speed for traffic on London's roads)

17. The London Cycle hire scheme
(joined a growing list of cities . . . Copenhagen, Barcelona, Paris . . .)

18. The London underground
(Tube map . . . has been much copied and adapted elsewhere)

QUESTIONS 19-23

Reading passage 2 has five sections, A-E.
Choose the most suitable headings for sections A-E from the list of headings below. Write the appropriate numbers (i-ix) next to the sections.
NB There are more headings than sections, so you will not use them all.

List of headings
i. Current an d past actions ii. Congestion and pollution iii. Problem s on the roads iv. The best city in the world v. A centre of activity vi. The m any benefits of cycling vii. Cycling in European cities viii. A new initiative ix. Rail system s

19. Section A
(not iv: 'the best' suggests in all areas, not just most satisfying 'cultural experience')

20. Section B
(not ii: congestion is mentioned, but pollution is not in the text at all, the only traffic mentioned in this paragraph is road traffic)

21. Section C
('actions' refers to measures to reduce traffic congestion)

22. Section D
('initiative' relates to latest solution - this is not an original idea but it is a new initiative for London)

23. Section E
(benefits include seeing the streets and finding their way around, exercise and possible weight loss)

QUESTIONS 24-27

Complete the summary below, each time with ONE WORD from Reading passage 2.

The Barclays London Cycle Hire Scheme was started in 2010 in the hope of providing a (24) for the existing transport issues.The money that was necessary to have a scheme like this was sourced from (25) and allowed London to have 5,000 bikes initially, but there are likely to be (26) to the scheme.The bikes have a tracking (27) , are properly equipped and regularly maintained.