Which of these could best help you understand the main idea of this passage?
Unfortunately, the United States has been lagging behind Europe in making alternative transportation an attractive
option. Cities and suburbs are spread out, bike parking is far less common, and most bike paths are recreational paths
that go along rivers or through parks, not functional paths that take riders to businesses and workplaces. The one area in
which the U.S. outstrips Europe's transportation efforts is in the number of buses and trains that allow riders to bring
bikes aboard.
There is one exception: Portland, Oregon. Portland is a model bike city in the U.S., putting into practice many of the same
ideas that Denmark, Germany, and the Netherlands have used. And they are succeeding in Portland in a big way. From
1991 to 2008, Portland managed to more than triple the number of bike trips taken in the city.
For the United States to get serious about alternative transportation and solving the transportation crisis, many more
cities will need to adopt the strategies that have been so successful in Portland and Europe. City by city, we can make a
huge difference. Will your city be next? Think about how you, too, can get involved and be part of something big
a. Ask yourself questions such as, who is passage c. prepare a KWL chart
about, what is it stating, where is this taking
place?
b. outline the passage
d. none of the above