Essay 15 – Governments should spend money on railways rather than roads

GT Writing Task 2 (Essay Writing) Sample # 15

You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.

Write about the following topic:

Governments should spend money on railways rather than roads.

To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Write at least 250 words.

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Model Answer 1: [View: The decision should be based on some criteria.]
The development of a country’s infrastructure and transportation facility is utterly important for the overall progress of the nation. Railways and road transports are used by a vast majority and hence have great importance but which one should get priority is controversial. I believe whether a government needs to focus on strengthening its road or railways should be based on its geographic location, population distribution, economic strength and demand.

To begin with, locomotives for commuting are preferred by many and can carry far more commuters and goods at a time than road carriers. Hence, it is thought to be a better alternative to the existing road transportation- which often kills valuable time due to traffic congestion. I think export-oriented countries with a large population should improve their railways.

However, building and maintaining railways and importing new trains are expensive. Poor countries cannot support locomotives as their main transportation system and heavily rely on road transport. It is true that countries like Japan and Russia have an extensive rail system and have been greatly facilitated by their policy but not all countries can implement it. On top of that, rich nations, where citizens mostly drive their own cars, have more urgency to develop their road transport.

Looking further, geographic locations should be considered to build railways as not all countries have vast highlands. For example, Italy has an improved water transportation facility and the authority should focus more on that.

To conclude, improving railways or roads is not a luxury and should be determined based on criteria like the topographical features of a country, its economic strength, people’s need, trade arrangement and so on to assist the overall national progress.

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Model Answer 2: [View: Governments ought to invest money on railways rather than roads.]
Implementing proper transportation facilities for the nation is a challenge for any government. Whether a vast rail network or an improved road transport system can better facilitate the transportation of goods and commuters is a neverending debate. I believe that fast rails are the transportation of the future and that is why administrations should spend money on building and developing railways.

To begin with, trains are faster and can carry a large number of passengers and goods at a time. When thousands of cars carry office-goers and students each day in a city, only a few shuttle trains can do the same. Traffic congestion kills millions of work hours per year and costs billions of dollars and it is caused basically by the sheer number of road transports we use every day. According to a report published by the Road Transport Authority in Bangladesh, traffic congestion in Dhaka city eats up to 3.2 million working hours per day. A vast network of railways is the only alternative to curb the loss.

Moreover, expanding roads in cities is almost impossible as they must interconnect the existing lanes. Locomotives, on the contrary, primarily use railroads built aside the cities and consume less space. Effectively managed rail tracks do not cause congestion and save time. And this is why it is considered the transportation of the future. For instance, developed nations subsidise heavily in developing their transportation facilities and they invest more in expanding their rail system.

To conclude, a government should plan for the future, considering facilities and their impacts on the environment, while investing in infrastructure development. As locomotives offer more conveniences than road transports do, it deserves more budget.

Useful vocabulary for this essay:

Other ways of saying ‘the government’:
Administration, authority, state, ministry, management, state head, policymakers, country head.

‘Spend’ can also be expressed using:
Allocate money, disburse money, put in, employ, utilise, to expend, use, fund, allocate budget.

Other ways of saying ‘money’ in this essay:
Resources, funds, a portion of the national budget.

Synonyms of ‘railways’:
Railroads, railtrack, train system, rail transports, locomotive networks, rail networks, rail lines,

What about ‘rail’?
Train, locomotives.

Some other ways to mean ‘roads’:
Road transports, expressway, highway, bus and truck transits.

More words related to the ‘railway’:
LRT, mass transit, metro, rapid transit, subway, elevated railway, tube, underground railway.