Question

Tina is considering two taxi services for a ride to the airport, Callout Cab and Vista Van. Each charges an initial fee and a fixed rate per mile. She writes a system of equations and graphs it on a coordinate grid. How can Tina determine which taxi service costs the least?
Use the drop-down menus to explain your answer.
Both companies will have the same cost for any number of miles if the graph of the system is Choose...
The company that will always cost less One company will cost less than the other company for any number of miles if the graph of the system is Choose...
is the one with the Choose...
One company will sometimes cost less and sometimes cost more than the other company if the graph of the system is Choose...

Answer 1

Both companies will have the same cost for any number of miles if the graph of the system is the same line (coincident lines).

One company will cost less than the other company for any number of miles if the graph of the system is parallel lines — the cheaper company is the one with the lower initial fee (lower y‑intercept).

One company will sometimes cost less and sometimes cost more than the other company if the graph of the system is intersecting lines (they cross at one point).