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How Cities Move People
Moving several million people daily produces rules that contradict intuition almost every time.
About this topic
Urban transport is full of results that sound wrong. Adding road capacity can increase congestion, because faster journeys attract more of them until the delay returns. Removing a road sometimes improves traffic for the same reason in reverse. These questions cover the systems cities use and the effects planners have to account for, including the ones that make political sense and traffic sense in opposite directions.
Questions & answers
How Cities Move People: all 10 questions and answers
Every question in this quiz is listed below with its correct answer and the reasoning behind it. Play first if you would rather not see the answers — or read through as a study sheet.
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1Which city opened the world's first underground railway?
- A Paris
- B New York
- C Berlin
- D London Correct
Answer: D. London
Why: The Metropolitan Railway opened in 1863, running steam trains through tunnels just below the street.
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2Induced demand describes what?
- A Seasonal changes in travel
- B Public transport losing riders
- C New road capacity attracting extra traffic until congestion returns Correct
- D Demand falling when prices rise
Answer: C. New road capacity attracting extra traffic until congestion returns
Why: Journeys that were previously not worth making become worth making, which is why widening a motorway often provides only temporary relief.
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3Braess's paradox states that what can happen?
- A Congestion is unavoidable
- B Adding a road can make overall travel times worse Correct
- C Removing traffic lights always helps
- D Buses slow all other traffic
Answer: B. Adding a road can make overall travel times worse
Why: Individually rational route choices can produce a worse outcome for everyone. Closing a road has occasionally improved flow in practice.
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4A "desire path" is what?
- A A worn track showing the route people actually take Correct
- B A planned cycle route
- C A pedestrian-only street
- D A bus lane
Answer: A. A worn track showing the route people actually take
Why: Planners increasingly treat them as evidence of a design error rather than as a nuisance to be fenced off.
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5Bus rapid transit achieves metro-like capacity by doing what?
- A Running double-decker buses
- B Using longer routes
- C Increasing fares
- D Giving buses dedicated lanes, priority signals and off-board ticketing Correct
Answer: D. Giving buses dedicated lanes, priority signals and off-board ticketing
Why: Systems in Curitiba and Bogotá showed it can move very large numbers at a fraction of the cost of rail.
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6Congestion charging aims to do what?
- A Ban cars entirely
- B Subsidise fuel
- C Price scarce road space so demand falls Correct
- D Raise money only
Answer: C. Price scarce road space so demand falls
Why: London and Singapore both report reduced traffic in charged zones, though the effect on the surrounding network is debated.
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7Why are metro systems usually more efficient than buses per passenger?
- A They run less often
- B Dedicated track means no interaction with road traffic Correct
- C They are cheaper to build
- D They carry fewer people
Answer: B. Dedicated track means no interaction with road traffic
Why: Segregation is what allows reliable frequency. A bus in mixed traffic inherits every delay the traffic experiences.
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8Level crossings are progressively removed from busy rail lines because what?
- A They limit train frequency and create collision risk Correct
- B Trains cannot brake
- C They are expensive to light
- D Road users demand it
Answer: A. They limit train frequency and create collision risk
Why: Each crossing forces a compromise between road and rail capacity, and grade separation removes it.
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9The "last mile problem" refers to what?
- A The final mile of a motorway
- B Freight delivery to ports
- C Rural road maintenance
- D Getting people between a transport hub and their final destination Correct
Answer: D. Getting people between a transport hub and their final destination
Why: It is why station cycle parking, feeder buses and hire schemes matter disproportionately to whether a network gets used.
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10Roundabouts generally reduce serious collisions compared with signalled crossroads because what?
- A Drivers stop completely
- B They carry less traffic
- C They remove high-speed right-angle conflicts Correct
- D They are always smaller
Answer: C. They remove high-speed right-angle conflicts
Why: Traffic meets at shallow angles and lower speed, so the collisions that do occur tend to be far less severe.
Frequently asked questions about How Cities Move People
How many questions are in How Cities Move People?
How Cities Move People has 10 questions and takes about 7 minutes to finish. It is rated Medium and sits in our Transport & Travel category.
How is How Cities Move People scored?
Each of the 10 correct answers adds 10 XP, up to 100 XP for a clean run. Wrong answers cost you nothing, and your full question-by-question review is shown at the end.
Are the answers to How Cities Move People explained?
Yes. All 10 questions carry a written explanation of why the correct answer is right, so the quiz works as a study sheet as well as a test.
Can I replay How Cities Move People?
Yes, as often as you like. The questions and the answer options are reshuffled on each run, and you can use Practice Mistakes afterwards to retry only the ones you missed. No account is needed to play.
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