Question

The following data depicts the various modes of public transportation used by various groups of people between two particular cities:

Mode of Transportation

Bus
Rental Car Train Metro Tram
Number of passengers

700	600	5000	800	750

Which measure of central tendency represents the best value?

• A. Mean
• B. Mode
• C. Median

Answer 1

The correct option is C Median

Let's find the mean, mode, and median sequentially and compare the result.

1. Mean
Mean/average
$=$ (Sum of all the data)/(Total number of data points)
$\Rightarrow$ Sum of all the data
$=700+600+5000+800+750$
$=7850$

Mean/average $=\frac{7850}{5}$
$=1570$
This value is not closer and quite offset from all the data points.

2. Mode
As in the given data set all the modes of transportation to occur exactly one time, it has no mode.

3. Median
To determine the median, we arrange the data points in ascending order.
Mode of Transportation
Rental Car Bus Tram Metro Train Number of passengers

600	700	750	800	5000

The number at the middle position of the arranged data set is 750 which corresponds to the number of passengers traveling by tram.

Here, 750 is quite closer to other data points of the given data set.

Hence, compared to the mean, the median represents a better

Here, 750 is quite closer to other data points of the given data set.

Hence, compared to mean, median represents better measure of central tendency for this particular data set.