Examen de Inglés PAU Baleares 2024 · Extraordinaria

The bicibús: How Barcelona got kids cycling safely to school—and loving it!

On a cool September morning, a group of about 60 parents and children aged 3 to 11, on bikes and scooters, gather in the Plaça Conxita Pérez—Barcelona’s Eixample district—for the school run. Today is Friday and the atmosphere is especially festive. Dua Lipa’s song “Dance the Night” is playing and there’s an air of excitement as though the kids were going on an excursion, not just to school. They are waiting for the bicibús (‘bike bus’), a fun, safe mode of transport that makes going to school feel like a party. It leaves Monday to Friday at 8.30am sharp outside the Sant Antoni market and is no ordinary vehicle. It has hundreds of wheels and dozens of drivers but no passengers.

“When we started out two years ago there were 20-30 people, now there are 60-70”, says Genís Domínguez, one of the organisers. The concept has been around since the 1990s, he explains, but locally, it began three years ago in the Catalan town of Vic. They had to adapt the idea for it to work in that particular neighbourhood since Eixample´s district has a high volume of fast-moving traffic and the only way to move safely is to occupy the entire road, therefore the bicibús is treated as a single vehicle.

One or two adults lead the group, with two or three others on each side. A police patrol car is at the rear to ward off any impatient motorists. At each crossing the adult riders on the flanks block the traffic to let any stragglers cross and to stop any of them jumping the lights. Besides the police car, the entire operation is run by parents via a WhatsApp group. It’s lively but surprisingly orderly and there’s little or no conflict with motorists. Taking part in this activity is clearly a high point in the children’s day too. “What I like best is chatting to my friends while we’re on our bikes”, says Alex Hurtado, 9. “For me the best thing is we can put on music and we get to choose which songs we want”, adds Rita Camprubí, 7.

There are now about 15 bicibús routes in the city, operating two or three days a week. The Sant Antoni route is especially popular because most of the children must cross one six-lane and two four-lane streets to get to school. The Barcelona BiciBus Network estimates that around 15,000 bicibús journeys were made during the previous school year. The scheme is now attracting attention and imitators in Spain and beyond. Boix says they have had inquiries and visitors from France, Italy, the UK, and Germany.

“It’s an easy model to replicate elsewhere”, she says. “In a neighbourhood such as the Eixample, it’s often difficult to feel integrated”, says Rosa Suriñach, a social policy adviser. She adds, “The bicibús helps to create a sense of belonging” and provides protection for cycling children.

Adapted from The Guardian, October 2023

1. Say whether the following statements are TRUE or FALSE. Explain WHY using your own words OR finding evidence in the text. NO marks are given for only TRUE or FALSE. (1 point)

a)

In Eixample's district, the bicibús cannot move parallelly to other cars and means of transport. (0,5)

TRUE

FALSE

b)

Some adult riders situate themselves at the end of the bicibús. (0,5)

TRUE

FALSE

The bicibús: How Barcelona got kids cycling safely to school—and loving it!

On a cool September morning, a group of about 60 parents and children aged 3 to 11, on bikes and scooters, gather in the Plaça Conxita Pérez—Barcelona’s Eixample district—for the school run. Today is Friday and the atmosphere is especially festive. Dua Lipa’s song “Dance the Night” is playing and there’s an air of excitement as though the kids were going on an excursion, not just to school. They are waiting for the bicibús (‘bike bus’), a fun, safe mode of transport that makes going to school feel like a party. It leaves Monday to Friday at 8.30am sharp outside the Sant Antoni market and is no ordinary vehicle. It has hundreds of wheels and dozens of drivers but no passengers.

“When we started out two years ago there were 20-30 people, now there are 60-70”, says Genís Domínguez, one of the organisers. The concept has been around since the 1990s, he explains, but locally, it began three years ago in the Catalan town of Vic. They had to adapt the idea for it to work in that particular neighbourhood since Eixample´s district has a high volume of fast-moving traffic and the only way to move safely is to occupy the entire road, therefore the bicibús is treated as a single vehicle.

One or two adults lead the group, with two or three others on each side. A police patrol car is at the rear to ward off any impatient motorists. At each crossing the adult riders on the flanks block the traffic to let any stragglers cross and to stop any of them jumping the lights. Besides the police car, the entire operation is run by parents via a WhatsApp group. It’s lively but surprisingly orderly and there’s little or no conflict with motorists. Taking part in this activity is clearly a high point in the children’s day too. “What I like best is chatting to my friends while we’re on our bikes”, says Alex Hurtado, 9. “For me the best thing is we can put on music and we get to choose which songs we want”, adds Rita Camprubí, 7.

There are now about 15 bicibús routes in the city, operating two or three days a week. The Sant Antoni route is especially popular because most of the children must cross one six-lane and two four-lane streets to get to school. The Barcelona BiciBus Network estimates that around 15,000 bicibús journeys were made during the previous school year. The scheme is now attracting attention and imitators in Spain and beyond. Boix says they have had inquiries and visitors from France, Italy, the UK, and Germany.

“It’s an easy model to replicate elsewhere”, she says. “In a neighbourhood such as the Eixample, it’s often difficult to feel integrated”, says Rosa Suriñach, a social policy adviser. She adds, “The bicibús helps to create a sense of belonging” and provides protection for cycling children.

Adapted from The Guardian, October 2023

2. In your own words and based on the ideas from the text, answer the following question. NO marks are given for personal opinions or responses copied directly from the text. (1 point)

What do the children generally think of the bicibús ?

The bicibús: How Barcelona got kids cycling safely to school—and loving it!

On a cool September morning, a group of about 60 parents and children aged 3 to 11, on bikes and scooters, gather in the Plaça Conxita Pérez—Barcelona’s Eixample district—for the school run. Today is Friday and the atmosphere is especially festive. Dua Lipa’s song “Dance the Night” is playing and there’s an air of excitement as though the kids were going on an excursion, not just to school. They are waiting for the bicibús (‘bike bus’), a fun, safe mode of transport that makes going to school feel like a party. It leaves Monday to Friday at 8.30am sharp outside the Sant Antoni market and is no ordinary vehicle. It has hundreds of wheels and dozens of drivers but no passengers.

“When we started out two years ago there were 20-30 people, now there are 60-70”, says Genís Domínguez, one of the organisers. The concept has been around since the 1990s, he explains, but locally, it began three years ago in the Catalan town of Vic. They had to adapt the idea for it to work in that particular neighbourhood since Eixample´s district has a high volume of fast-moving traffic and the only way to move safely is to occupy the entire road, therefore the bicibús is treated as a single vehicle.

One or two adults lead the group, with two or three others on each side. A police patrol car is at the rear to ward off any impatient motorists. At each crossing the adult riders on the flanks block the traffic to let any stragglers cross and to stop any of them jumping the lights. Besides the police car, the entire operation is run by parents via a WhatsApp group. It’s lively but surprisingly orderly and there’s little or no conflict with motorists. Taking part in this activity is clearly a high point in the children’s day too. “What I like best is chatting to my friends while we’re on our bikes”, says Alex Hurtado, 9. “For me the best thing is we can put on music and we get to choose which songs we want”, adds Rita Camprubí, 7.

There are now about 15 bicibús routes in the city, operating two or three days a week. The Sant Antoni route is especially popular because most of the children must cross one six-lane and two four-lane streets to get to school. The Barcelona BiciBus Network estimates that around 15,000 bicibús journeys were made during the previous school year. The scheme is now attracting attention and imitators in Spain and beyond. Boix says they have had inquiries and visitors from France, Italy, the UK, and Germany.

“It’s an easy model to replicate elsewhere”, she says. “In a neighbourhood such as the Eixample, it’s often difficult to feel integrated”, says Rosa Suriñach, a social policy adviser. She adds, “The bicibús helps to create a sense of belonging” and provides protection for cycling children.

Adapted from The Guardian, October 2023

3. Find in the text words or phrases which mean the same as the ones below. In the case of verbs, ONLY infinitive forms will be accepted (1 point):

1)

The act of asking for information or the process of asking a question. (0,25)

2)

Exactly at the stated time. (0,25)

3)

A person or animal that is a bit behind the main group. (0,25)

4)

To make or do something again in exactly the same way. (0,25)

4. Follow the instructions for each question and answer them (2 points):

4.1.

Fill the blanks in the following sentences with the correct form of the verb in brackets. (0,5)

A:

you

(enjoy) cycling?

B: Yeah, it’s my favourite hobby.

A: When

you

(start) doing it?

B: I can’t remember the exact moment, but I know I was really young.

4.2.

Complete the following sentences with the correct form of the word in brackets. (0,5)

a) Before learning how to use this machine, you need to read the

(safe) measures.

b) I’m so excited about this new

(sustain) transport project.

4.3.

Fill the blanks in the following two sentences with a phrasal verb that means the same as the verb in brackets. (0,5)

a) You’re going too fast, please

(reduce speed) or we’re going to have an accident.

b) Our flight was delayed two hours; we didn’t

(leave the ground, begin to fly) until 9.43 a.m.

4.4.

Rewrite the following sentence in reported speech. (0,5)

‘Remove these posters from the wall’, my teacher told me.

My teacher told

5. Look at the highlighted part of the words below. Three of the words in each line (A, B, C, D) contain the same sound. Circle the word which contains a different sound (1 point):

5.1.

5.2.

5.3.

5.4.

6. Write a composition of 120-150 words on the following topic. Answer ALL the questions (4 points):

What are your favourite means of transport? Can you think of ways of reducing pollution through these means of transport? Explain.

Total number of words:

Assessment criteria: · 0 · 0,25 · 0,50 · 0,75 · 1

Task fulfilment: · 0 · 0,25 · 0,50 · 0,75 · 1

Grammar: · 0 · 0,25 · 0,50 · 0,75 · 1

Organisation: · 0 · 0,25 · 0,50 · 0,75 · 1

Vocabulary: · 0 · 0,25 · 0,50 · 0,75 · 1

Total:

1. Say whether the following statements are TRUE or FALSE. Explain WHY using your own words OR finding evidence in the text. NO marks are given for only TRUE or FALSE. (1 point)

a)

The UK has a comprehensive programme to provide support for the families of people showing negative conducts. [0,5]

TRUE

FALSE

b)

Even though less than 1% of the world's population suffer from game addiction, companies are still guilty. [0,5]

TRUE

FALSE

2. In your own words and based on the ideas from the text, answer the following question. NO marks are given for personal opinions or responses copied directly from the text. (1 point)

How do free-to-play designers get people addicted to playing?

3. Find in the text words or phrases which mean the same as the ones below. In the case of verbs, ONLY infinitive forms will be accepted (1 point):

1)

Behaving in a way that is dishonest or unfair in order to get what you want. [0,25]

2)

Techniques or methods used for achieving a particular goal. [0,25]

3)

Something that causes worry or fear. [0,25]

4)

An illness of the mind or body. [0,25]

4. Follow the instructions for each question and answer them (2 points):

4.1.

Fill the blanks in the following sentences with the correct form of the verb in brackets. [0,5]

A: I wish my parents (buy) me the new PlayStation.

B: Why? You already have the Xbox and Nintendo Switch.

A: I know but it has this new feature that allows you to play with people from all around the world.

B: Why don't you explain this to them?

A: You're right. I (talk) to them again, fingers crossed.

4.2.

Complete the following sentences with the correct form of the word in brackets. [0,5]

a) Time (manage) skills are crucial when playing games: they can help us maintain a healthy balance between leisure time and our academic responsibilities.

b) Having a (support) family and friends is key to overcoming any type of addiction.

4.3.

Rewrite the following sentence using the 3 rd conditional form. Do not change the meaning of the original sentence. [0,5]

His relationships suffered because he didn't realize the severity of his gambling addiction sooner.

If he

4.4.

Rewrite the sentence using a modal verb. Do not change the meaning of the original sentence. [0,5]

It isn't necessary for you to face addiction alone.

You

5. Look at the highlighted part of the words below. Three of the words in each line (A, B, C, D) contain the same sound. Circle the word which contains a different sound (1 point):

5.1.

[0,25]

5.2.

[0,25]

5.3.

[0,25]

5.4.

[0,25]

6. Write a composition of 120-150 words on the following topic. Answer ALL the questions (4 points):

What negative effects can videogame addiction cause in our personal lives? Do you think this type of addiction is taken seriously in Spain? Explain.

Word count: words (target: 120-150 words)

Assessment criteria

Criteria

0

0.25

0.50

0.75

1

Task fulfilment:

0

0,25

0,50

0,75

1

Grammar:

0

0,25

0,50

0,75

1

Organisation:

0

0,25

0,50

0,75

1

Vocabulary:

0

0,25

0,50

0,75

1