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April 16, 2019

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so is there any online material that you'd recommend?

Sir, I don not listen podcast and audio books now.As before, I used to listen podcast based on IELTS topic and some audio books also.I think listening different podcasts and audio books can take long time which is not good for short term period. Preparing topic wise and question wise,using proper method and understanding exam criteria is the key to success in IELTS.

Sir,"Think about how much listening you do in your own language each day."you means listening audio materials in my own language could help improve my English listening skill?

Hi Simon,
someone claims this essay is band 9. Please leave your comment on this essay. Is it really band 9 essay?
Thanks

Band 9 IELTS essay sample

Nowadays, heavy traffic congestion has become a challenging problem in many cities. Some people argue that free public transport service should be provided to tackle this problem. In my opinion, free public transport is certainly a great idea, but it is not viable way to ease traffic congestion.

It is true that round the clock free public transport can reduce the occurrence of traffic congestion because in most cases traffic issues are caused by the presence of a large number of private vehicles on the road. If public transport services are provided free of cost and their frequency is increased, few people will want to drive their personal vehicles. This will theoretically reduce the number of cars on the roads and ease traffic congestion.

On the flip side, when there are too many takers for the free public transport, buses and trains will become overcrowded. This will make the journey uncomfortable and many people will have to stand all the way. As a result, affluent commuters will choose not to use public transport. Instead, they will drive their own car to work and the traffic situation will get worse again. Another disadvantage of providing free public transport is that it is a huge burden on the government and as such it is not a viable idea in the long term.

Personally I feel that instead of proving free public transport, the government should try to improve the frequency and reliability of buses and trains. It should also build wider roads and more flyovers. If people can ride comfortably on a bus or a train and still reach their destination on time, they will definitely consider that option. Hence, instead of making public transport a free service, what the government needs to do is to improve it. In addition, the government needs to ensure that the cost of traveling by a bus or train is always less than the cost of driving one’s own vehicle.

To conclude, free public transport might seem to be a great way to tackle traffic congestion, but in my opinion, it is not a practical solution to this problem. A better option is to enhance the quality of public transport and subsidise its cost.

I'm really wondering about the method of passive listening (open listening resources but do not pay attention to that). Simon, or anyone here, could you please give me comments about this method?

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