Rethinking city life

The deciding clue is “Had the council [1] _____ solely on complaints, it might have abandoned the street trial immediately.”. Had + subject + past participle is an inverted if-clause about an unreal past alternative. It means if ... had relied...; it does not state that reliance actually occurred. In this task, the completed sentence is “Had the council relied solely on complaints, it might have abandoned the street trial immediately.”.

The deciding clue is “The project was intended to take residents’ concerns into [2] _____.”. Take something into account means include it when making a decision; the noun account completes this fixed expression. In this task, the completed sentence is “The project was intended to take residents’ concerns into account.”.

The deciding clue is “By the time the first review took place, traffic counters [3] _____ data for twelve weeks.”. Use had been + -ing to express the duration of activity leading up to a past point, including evidence of recent activity. In this task, the completed sentence is “By the time the first review took place, traffic counters had been collecting data for twelve weeks.”.

The deciding clue is “The most [4] _____ finding was that delivery delays varied sharply by time of day.”. The gap describes the following finding/discovery/improvement; an adjective, significant, is needed after the most. In this task, the completed sentence is “The most significant finding was that delivery delays varied sharply by time of day.”.

The deciding clue is “[5] _____ the overall average improved, some morning deliveries took longer.”. Use although/even though + finite clause to express a concession followed by a subject and finite verb. In this task, the completed sentence is “Although the overall average improved, some morning deliveries took longer.”.

The deciding clue is “The planners proposed [6] _____ the loading window rather than removing the entire scheme.”. Propose/recommend followed directly by an action takes an -ing complement here. The plan is the action itself, not a finite tense or an inserted to-infinitive. In this task, the completed sentence is “The planners proposed extending the loading window rather than removing the entire scheme.”.

The deciding clue is “Their report placed particular emphasis [7] _____ access for people with limited mobility.”. The collocation is based on for a basis, or place emphasis on for a focus. In the completed sentence, on introduces the stated basis or focus. In this task, the completed sentence is “Their report placed particular emphasis on access for people with limited mobility.”.

The deciding clue is “They consulted residents [8] _____ daily journeys were poorly represented in the original survey.”. The relative clause starts with a noun associated with the antecedent, such as work, family or objections. Whose marks that possessive connection while the following noun remains in place. In this task, the completed sentence is “They consulted residents whose daily journeys were poorly represented in the original survey.”.

The deciding clue is “Only after the revised arrangements had been tested [9] _____ the committee approve a longer trial.”. Use only after/until + clause; inverted main clause to express inversion in the main clause, not inside the clause introduced by after or until. In this task, the completed sentence is “Only after the revised arrangements had been tested did the committee approve a longer trial.”.

The deciding clue is “The next review must ask whether benefits are fairly distributed, [10] _____ than treating a single positive average as sufficient evidence.”. Rather than contrasts the intended action with the alternative being rejected; the two actions have parallel grammatical roles. In this task, the completed sentence is “The next review must ask whether benefits are fairly distributed, rather than treating a single positive average as sufficient evidence.”.