Logical ReasoningDifficulty: Easy

PT143 S4 Q12 Explanation

After the rush-hour speed limit

A free, expert breakdown of this official LSAT Logical Reasoning question.

TopicsParadox

Keep going in LSAT Lab

  • Save & drill this skill — build targeted practice sets from questions like this one

  • Video walkthroughs — watch every question solved step by step

  • 81 official LSATs — as questions, timed sections & full-length tests

Start practicing free

Free to start

Full official LSAT questions are available through LawHub. This page provides LSAT Lab's explanation, strategy, and review tools without republishing the full official question.

Stimulus

After the rush-hour speed limit on the British M25 motorway was lowered from 70 miles per hour (115 kilometers per hour) to 50 miles per hour (80 kilometers decreased by approximately 15 percent.

What this question is testing

Paradox

Your task

Break the argument into its conclusion and evidence, then do exactly what the question stem asks with that structure.

Common trap

Answers that sound relevant to the topic but don't connect to the argument's actual reasoning.

Winning move

Predict what a right answer must do, then test each choice against the conclusion-evidence gap.

Reading along? Open the full official question in LawHub — we show a fragment here and keep the reasoning in our own words.

The question
12.

Which one of the following, if true, most helps to explain the decrease in travel

Answer choices

  1. Trap1% picked this

    After the decrease in the rush-hour speed limit, the average speed on the M25 was significantly lower during rush hours than at

  2. Trap0% picked this

    Travel times during periods other than rush hours were essentially unchanged after the rush-hour speed

  3. Correct97% picked this

    Before the rush-hour speed limit was lowered, rush-hour accidents that caused lengthy delays were common, and most of these accidents

    Why this is right

    Answer C is correct.

    Skill tested: Paradox · how this choice captures the argument's function is the move to repeat next time.

  4. Trap0% picked this

    Enforcement of speed limits on the M25 was quite rigorous both before and and after the rush-hour

  5. Trap1% picked this

    The number of people who drive on the M25 during rush hours did not increase after the rush-hour

Continue the review in LSAT Lab

Save this question, watch the video walkthrough, and drill similar questions in your LSAT Lab account.

Save and practice this skill
LSAT Lab

Turn this review into a targeted study plan.

Save this question, drill more like it, watch the video walkthrough, and track your progress in your LSAT Lab account.

Start practicing free