Measuring the Impact of a Night Bus
About this practice test
An informational report about a weekend night bus in Harborough, the methods used to measure its impact, the passengers it served, and the limits and benefits identified.
What you’ll practice
Finding detail
Locate specific information and evidence.
Interpreting ideas
Connect main points and inferences.
Evaluating arguments
Assess claims, evidence, and limitations.
What to expect:
12 questions with explanations to review after submission.
Study the questions and tasks
Work through the material below, or start the interactive practice above to complete an attempt. Try the exercises before opening any answer or transcript sections, then use them to review your work.
- Practice level
- B2. Try this level if you can follow the instructions and understand most of the language; choose an earlier level if you need more support.
- Question formats
- Fill in the blank (text)
How to approach this practice
Read the passage for its main idea, then return to the relevant sentence or paragraph for each question. Base answers on the passage.
Measuring the Impact of a Night Bus
In the river city of Harborough, the council launched a weekend night bus called the N8. It linked the university, the hospital district and the railway station after midnight. Officials said the idea came from repeated complaints that people were stranded when the last train had gone and taxis were expensive. The route was not meant to be glamorous. It was supposed to be practical: a way for people to get home without paying for a long cab ride or trying to walk across the city centre at 2 a.m. To measure whether the route mattered, Maya Chen, a transport planner, asked two volunteers to stand at the taxi rank and outside clubs for three Fridays in November. They handed out a short questionnaire and counted where people had come from and how they planned to get home. The same questions were repeated before the N8 began, so the team could compare what people said with what they actually did. Maya knew that numbers alone would not tell the whole story, but she wanted a clear baseline before anyone started praising or criticising the service. After the first eight weeks, the researchers compared late-night taxi journeys in the eight weeks before the bus opened with the same weeks after it began. The first figures did not show a dramatic fall, but they did show a change in who was travelling. Shift workers from the hospital, cleaning staff and students became the most regular passengers. On some weekends, the bus carried a surprisingly mixed crowd: people in uniform, groups heading home from a concert and a few older residents who disliked waiting outside in the cold. The team also checked ticket sales against the weather. On wet nights, the bus filled much faster, and some riders said they had avoided a long walk to the station. A separate note taken by the volunteers suggested that the service was less about tourism and more about ordinary trips home. This mattered because the council had expected the route to attract visitors leaving bars, yet the evidence showed that daily necessity was a bigger reason to ride than late-night entertainment. One complication was that several people who boarded the N8 would otherwise have shared private minibuses, so the route did not remove every car journey from the city. In addition, after 2 a.m. the bus often arrived full, which meant that a few passengers waited for the next service. Even so, the operators considered it useful because it made the city centre feel safer. The point, Maya argued, was not to count only the journeys that disappeared, but to notice the ones that became easier and less stressful. Maya wrote that the night bus should not be seen as a replacement for the late train. Instead, she argued, it worked best as a back-up for people without a car and for anyone leaving work or a concert after midnight. She recommended keeping the same timetable for now, then increasing frequency only if enough drivers could be found. In her view, the service proved something modest but important: a transport change can matter even when it does not transform the whole system.
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Question 1 · Fill in the blank (text)
Complete each blank with the missing word or phrase.
Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage. The council launched the N8 because people were stranded when the ___ had gone.
Return to the passage, recording or visualCheck answers and explanations
- Blank 1
- last train
The correct completion is "last train" because the passage says people were stranded when the last train had gone. A phrase like "late train" is close in meaning, but it is not the wording used in the text.
people were stranded when the last train had gone and taxis were expensive
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Question 2 · Fill in the blank (text)
Complete each blank with the missing word or phrase.
Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage. Before the N8 began, the volunteers stood at the ___ and outside clubs.
Return to the passage, recording or visualCheck answers and explanations
- Blank 1
- taxi rank
The missing words are "taxi rank" because the passage says the volunteers stood there to survey people. "Taxi stop" would sound possible, but it is not the phrase used in the passage.
asked two volunteers to stand at the taxi rank and outside clubs for three Fridays in November
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Question 3 · Fill in the blank (text)
Complete each blank with the missing word or phrase.
Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage. To gather basic data, they handed out a ___.
Return to the passage, recording or visualCheck answers and explanations
- Blank 1
- short questionnaire / questionnaire
The passage says the volunteers handed out "a short questionnaire," so the missing phrase is "short questionnaire." "Questionnaire" is also acceptable because it is a direct, shorter extract from the same phrase. "Survey" is too general and does not match the wording exactly.
They handed out a short questionnaire and counted where people had come from and how they planned to get home
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Question 4 · Fill in the blank (text)
Complete each blank with the missing word or phrase.
Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage. After the route opened, the team compared ___ in the eight weeks before and after the launch.
Return to the passage, recording or visualCheck answers and explanations
- Blank 1
- late-night taxi journeys
The answer is "late-night taxi journeys" because that is exactly what the researchers compared. "Taxi use" is a broader idea, but the passage is more specific.
the researchers compared late-night taxi journeys in the eight weeks before the bus opened with the same weeks after it began
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Question 5 · Fill in the blank (text)
Complete each blank with the missing word or phrase.
Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage. The most regular passengers were ___ from the hospital, cleaning staff and students.
Return to the passage, recording or visualCheck answers and explanations
- Blank 1
- shift workers
"Shift workers" completes the sentence because the passage names them as the most regular passengers. "Hospital staff" would not be enough, since the text includes workers from other jobs too.
Shift workers from the hospital, cleaning staff and students became the most regular passengers
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Question 6 · Fill in the blank (text)
Complete each blank with the missing word or phrase.
Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage. The team also checked ticket sales against the ___.
Return to the passage, recording or visualCheck answers and explanations
- Blank 1
- weather
The missing word is "weather" because the passage states that ticket sales were checked against it. "Conditions" is too vague and does not match the text exactly.
The team also checked ticket sales against the weather
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Question 7 · Fill in the blank (text)
Complete each blank with the missing word or phrase.
Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage. On ___, the bus filled much faster.
Return to the passage, recording or visualCheck answers and explanations
- Blank 1
- wet nights
The correct phrase is "wet nights" because the passage says the bus filled faster on those nights. "Rainy evenings" sounds possible, but it is not the wording used in the passage.
On wet nights, the bus filled much faster
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Question 8 · Fill in the blank (text)
Complete each blank with the missing word or phrase.
Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage. The service was less about tourism and more about ___.
Return to the passage, recording or visualCheck answers and explanations
- Blank 1
- ordinary trips home
The phrase "ordinary trips home" fits because the volunteers' note said exactly that. "Late-night travel" is too broad and misses the contrast the passage makes.
the service was less about tourism and more about ordinary trips home
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Question 9 · Fill in the blank (text)
Complete each blank with the missing word or phrase.
Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage. Some passengers would otherwise have shared ___.
Return to the passage, recording or visualCheck answers and explanations
- Blank 1
- private minibuses / minibuses
The answer can be "private minibuses" or the shorter extracted phrase "minibuses," because the passage directly says several people would otherwise have shared private minibuses and the shorter phrase remains supported by the text.
several people who boarded the N8 would otherwise have shared private minibuses
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Question 10 · Fill in the blank (text)
Complete each blank with the missing word or phrase.
Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage. The operators said the N8 was useful because it made the city centre feel ___.
Return to the passage, recording or visualCheck answers and explanations
- Blank 1
- safer
The missing word is "safer" because the passage says the operators considered it useful for that reason. "Calmer" might seem related, but the passage specifically says "safer."
the operators considered it useful because it made the city centre feel safer
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Question 11 · Fill in the blank (text)
Complete each blank with the missing word or phrase.
Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage. She argued that the bus should be treated as a ___ for people without a car.
Return to the passage, recording or visualCheck answers and explanations
- Blank 1
- back-up
The correct completion is "back-up" because Maya says the night bus worked best as a back-up. "Replacement" would be the opposite of what she argues.
it worked best as a back-up for people without a car
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Question 12 · Fill in the blank (text)
Complete each blank with the missing word or phrase.
Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage. Maya said frequency should be increased only if enough ___ could be found.
Return to the passage, recording or visualCheck answers and explanations
- Blank 1
- drivers
The answer is "drivers" because the passage links any increase in frequency to finding enough drivers. "Staff" is too general and not the word used in the text.
increasing frequency only if enough drivers could be found
What to review next
Find the words that support each answer. For a mistake, compare the question with the evidence and identify the detail or inference you missed.
A focused practice result shows how you did on these tasks. Use several activities across skills to decide what to study next; one practice score does not certify an overall CEFR level.
Before you practise: a worked example
Look for evidence in the text. Separate what the writer says from what you already know about the topic.
The library normally closes at six, but on Fridays it stays open until eight. When does it close on Friday?
The answer is eight. But introduces an exception to the normal closing time, so the first time mentioned is not the answer.
This teaching example is separate from the scored questions. After your test, compare any mistakes with the explanation and revisit the topic before trying again.