English C2 CPE

It's ironic that the very things that are supposed to provide access to the (0) UPPER (UP) floors of buildings - stairs - often, in fact, make them (1) ............ (ACCESS) For many elderly people and others with limited (2) ............ (MOBILE), getting upstairs can be a daily problem to be (3) ............ (COME) However, stairlifts have been helping people solve that problem since they first appeared in the US in the 1930s. Designs have (4) ............ (GO) many changes over the years and stairlifts have become (5) ............ (PROGRESS) safer and easier to use. Most consist of a seat which moves along rails that run along the wall. The user controls how (6) ............ (RAPID) the seat moves along the rails as it travels from the bottom of the stairs to the (7) ............ (LAND) at the top. In today's models, the (8) ............ (MOVE) is controlled by computers to give a smooth ride and the components are designed to withstand constant use. Many people have been given a new lease of life by the stairlift.