LSAT 129 – Section 2 – Question 20

LSAT 129 - Section 2 - Question 20

June 2009

You need a full course to see this video. Enroll now and get started in less than a minute.

Target time: 1:38

This is question data from the 7Sage LSAT Scorer. You can score your LSATs, track your results, and analyze your performance with pretty charts and vital statistics - all with a Free Account ← sign up in less than 10 seconds

Question QuickView	Type	Tags	Answer Choices	Curve	Question Difficulty	Psg/Game/S Difficulty	Explanation
PT129 S2 Q20	+LR	Weaken +Weak Causal Reasoning +CausR	A 1% 155 B 17% 162 C 8% 160 D 65% 166 E 9% 161	145 157 169	+Harder	144.702 +SubsectionEasier

In the past, when there was no highway speed limit, the highway accident rate increased yearly, peaking a decade ago. At that time, the speed limit on highways was set at 90 kilometers per hour (kph) (55 miles per hour). Every year since the introduction of the highway speed limit, the highway accident rate has been at least 15 percent lower than that of its peak rate. Thus, setting the highway speed limit at 90 kph (55 mph) has reduced the highway accident rate by at least 15 percent.

Summarize Argument

The author concludes that the highway speed limit has decreased the highway accident rate by at least 15 percent. This is because highway accidents have been at least 15 percent lower each year than the peak year for accidents, which came before any highway speed limit was introduced.

Notable Assumptions

Based on a mere correlation, the author assumes that the highway speed limit caused the reduction in accidents. This means he doesn’t think the accidents were reduced by some unaccounted-for third factor, such as road repairs or more thorough driving training.

In the years prior to the introduction of the highway speed limit, many cars could go faster than 90 kph (55 mph).

If there wasn’t a speed limit, then of course cars could go faster than 90kph. However, it doesn’t matter. We’re looking to weaken the claim that setting the speed limit at 90kph caused the reduction in accidents.

Ten years ago, at least 95 percent of all automobile accidents in the area occurred on roads with a speed limit of under 80 kph (50 mph).

We don’t care where other accidents occurred. We’re only interested in highway accidents.

Although the speed limit on many highways is officially set at 90 kph (55 mph), most people typically drive faster than the speed limit.

Even if most people speed, the limit may have helped reduce overall speed and thus helped highway safety. Perhaps most people are only speeding by 10kph, whereas before people were regularly driving in excess of 130kph.

Thanks to changes in automobile design in the past ten years, drivers are better able to maintain control of their cars in dangerous situations.

At the same time the speed limit came in, changes in car design improved driving safety. Thus, we can’t be sure it was really the speed limit that caused the 15 percent reduction in highway accidents.

It was not until shortly after the introduction of the highway speed limit that most cars were equipped with features such as seat belts and airbags designed to prevent harm to passengers.

We don’t care whether people get seriously injured in highway accidents. We only care about the cause behind the reduction in these accidents.

LSAT 129 – Section 2 – Question 20

LSAT 129 - Section 2 - Question 20

You need a full course to see this video. Enroll now and get started in less than a minute.

Take PrepTest

Review Results

LSAT PrepTest 129 Explanations

Section 1 - Logical Reasoning

Section 2 - Logical Reasoning

Section 3 - Logical Reasoning

Section 4 - Reading Comprehension

Leave a Reply Cancel