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IELTS Speaking Part 2: IELTS Cue Card/ Candidate Task Card.

Describe the traffic jam in your city.

You should say:

• how it happens
• what is the situation
• what problems people face due to this.

and what could be done to control this traffic jam.

Model Answer 1:
Traffic jam is a reality of the city life, and we have all seen it happen, from slowing down to crawling to complete stop, whether there is a reason for this type of bad traffic or not. Then, minutes later, it begins to move again and then suddenly moving to full speed. 'Why does this happen anyway' is a question many people ask and we all ask 'what could be done about it'!

Well, it happens because even a minor but natural “disruption”, like slight brake of a car or an unexpected bump in the roads, to the flow of traffic can cause a “self-enforcing” chain reaction which eventually amplifies until it creates a wave of slowed or stopped traffic. But, even when cars manage to leave this kind of irritating traffic jam or wave, the jam or wave doesn’t disappear itself as it may gradually drift backwards against the direction of the traffic.

Anyway, sometimes these traffic congestions bring the ‘worst’ in people, people who usually never become “angry”, as we get “agitated” and start blaming each other for the traffic congestion. Of course, people have their reasons for such “agitation” because, to begin with, it wastes their valuable time which otherwise could have been used to spend with their families or used in doing something “constructive”. Besides, when people get stuck in the traffic for longer than “usual”, they usually fail to get their “jobs” done on time, making them look inept or inefficient in the eyes of friends, co-workers and managers. Spending more time on the road also causes people to usually spend more on the fuel cost for their vehicles. As a whole, the country suffers from economic losses.

Anyway, we can control these kinds of traffic congestion if we choose to rely more on public transportation, which can carry and accommodate more people at once, instead of using private vehicles at will and at any time. We could also do things like widen our roads and streets and becoming more cautious in maintaining our cars more frequently in order to avoid “movement interruptions” on the roads, but we could also “build” more “technologically-advanced” cars which could adjust their “speeds” or change the roads/lanes by sensing the traffic jams ahead well in advance.

Sample Answer 2:
I come from (...say the city name…) and this city accommodates a large number of population. Due to this huge population and the increased number of public and private cars, the city often faces bad traffics.

The number of people living in this city, the cars they are using and the public transportation they need are much higher compared to the number of roads. As a result, the traffic jam often occurs and people have to suffer. Another reason for the traffic jam is the unauthorised parking of cars in the street. People do not often follow the exact traffic rules and because of their insincerity, we often face the horrible traffics in the streets.

The traffic jam in our city is one of the terrible things the city dwellers have to face. People get stuck on the roads and they have no idea when they would be able to reach their destination. Because of this jam, people often miss important schedules, students can’t reach school in time and the outcome is devastating. Because of the jam in the street people have to schedule accordingly and the total time killed in the street is simply a waste of time.

There are many steps which should be taken to reduce the jam in the street. First of all the people who are driving in the street should very strictly follow the traffic rules. The traffic control authority should more strictly apply the rules. The number of private automobiles is increasing rapidly. Many single families own multiple cars and thus increase the number of total cars driving in the street. The rule should be imposed on purchasing cars and the price of the fuel could be increased as well. The public transportation system should be improved so that people can travel in public cars. The city has more population than it can comprise and decentralisation of industries, offices and educational institutes can be another solution to this abhorrent problem. 

Similar Cue Card topics:

Your ability to talk about this Cue Card Topic would enable you to talk about the following Cue Card Topics as well:

1. Describe a problem that you face in your city.
2. Describe a bad experience you recently had.
3. Describe a thing that you would like to change in your city.
4. Describe something annoying about the place you live in.

• IELTS Cue Card
• IELTS Speaking
• Candidate Task Card

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