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

Question

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

Sandra plans to attend the Pike County Fair and is trying to decide what would be a better deal. She can pay $30 for unlimited rides, or she can pay $17 for admission plus $1 per ride. If Sandra goes on a certain number of rides, the two options wind up costing her the same amount. What is that cost? How many rides is that?

It will cost Sandra $________ for both options if she goes on _________ rides.

Answer 1

If unlimited rides costs $30, then we're looking at the per-ride option at $30 total too. In which case, 30-17 = 13 rides.

For graphing purposes, we can have x axis as number of rides, and y axis as cost.

And our 2 equations would be y = 30 and y = 17 + x

The intersection is when they are equal, or 30 = 17 + x => x = 13

It will cost Sandra $30 for both options if she goes on 13 rides.