Keep the evidence, even when the road reopens
Text: an original contemporary opinion-article-style practice extract.
The planters have been removed from Alder Street, the diversion signs have disappeared and traffic is moving through again. It would be easy for the council's record of the six-week closure to be equally brief: the road was closed, objections were raised and the road reopened. That account would preserve the order of events while erasing almost everything that could make the trial useful.
| Measure | Previous six weeks | Six-week trial |
|---|---|---|
| Average number of pedestrians each weekday | 2,850 | 3,760 |
| Average bus journey on the adjacent route | 14.2 minutes | 17.6 minutes |
| Shop deliveries arriving after the agreed time | 7% | 19% |
| Noise complaints from nearby residents | 24 | 10 |
These figures do not vote for one side. Supporters of the closure can point to 910 additional pedestrians each weekday and 14 fewer noise complaints. Opponents can point to bus journeys taking 3.4 minutes longer and the rise in late deliveries from 7% to 19%. Anyone who selects only one pair of figures can manufacture a simple verdict. The complete record offers something more valuable: an explanation of what improved, what worsened and what would need to change before another trial.
The original question was whether removing through traffic could make the street quieter and more welcoming to people on foot. The evidence suggests that it could, but it also shows that the diversion and delivery arrangements transferred difficulties elsewhere. Reopening the road was therefore not proof that the original idea was foolish. It was a response to results that were mixed rather than entirely favourable.
Some residents fear that keeping detailed records would provide an excuse to revive an unpopular scheme. That concern deserves an answer, but records are not instructions. The council should retain the traffic timings, delivery windows, route maps and comments both for and against the closure. Future planners could then judge whether altered bus routes, morning delivery periods or a shorter closure would address the problems. They might decide that no further trial is justified, but at least that decision would be informed.
We should not preserve only the evidence that supports the eventual outcome. A trial that ends is not necessarily a trial that failed. Its most lasting result may be the knowledge required to design something better—or to explain clearly why the idea should not return.
Evaluate how successfully the writer argues that the council should preserve the evidence and reasoning from the road-closure trial, although the road has reopened. Support your views with detailed reference to the extract.
834 exam-style questions on Edexcel GCSE English Language 2.3 Content: non-fiction study and transactional text types, covering 2.3.9 Write an article, 2.3.10 Write a letter, 2.3.11 Write a review, 2.3.12 Write a text for a speech, and 2.3.13 Write a section for a guide, textbook, leaflet or booklet. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.