Write a system of equations to describe the situation below, solve using any method, and fill in the blanks.

Question

Katie is going to the water slides and needs to figure out which deal is better. She can pay $32 to go on the water slides as much as she wants, or she can pay $18 to get in, plus an additional $1 per trip down the water slides. If Katie goes on a certain number of trips down the water slides, the two options are equivalent in terms of cost. What is the cost? How many trips is that?

Answer 1

Let C represent the total cost of each deal  

Let T be the number of trips down the water slide 

 

C = 32        for the 1st deal since the cost is the same regardless of how much she rides  

C = 18 + T  for the 2nd deal 

 

To find when the two costs are equal set them equal to each other and solve for T 

 

32 = 18 + T

T = 14  trips 

 

The cost must be $32 since that is the only cost possible for the 1st deal