Thank you Danielle,
your explanation is very clear, I think.

Danielle:

Sometimes I get confused as to which verb should be in imperfect sentence.

If the sentence was written as:

A New York City ordinance of 1897 regulated the use of bicycles, mandating a maximum speed of eight miles an hour, requiring cyclists keep feet on pedals and hands on handlebars at all times, and granting pedestrians right-of-way.

Would this convey a similar meaning as (A) or the past tense of the verb "regulate" mean that ordinance is no longer in effect?

thanks.

Okay, I need to correct myself here a bit. What I said about the imperfect tense and its usage is absolutely true, but I realized after looking at this again:

If you'll notice in the correct one (E), the first comma is deleted. It also corrects the sentence by changing 'regulated' to 'regulating'. "Regulating bicycles" is now an adjective phrase describing what the ordinance did, but it is not the verb of the sentence. Mandate, require, and grant are the verbs of the sentence, which is why they are in past tense, because the ordinance is no longer in effect.

That being said, the sentence as you wrote it is grammatically correct and expresses the same meaning -- . You could write it the way you listed and be perfectly fine, but unfortunately your construction wasn't an answer choice.

Okay, I need to correct myself here a bit. What I said about the imperfect tense and its usage is absolutely true, but I realized after looking at this again:

If you'll notice in the correct one (E), the first comma is deleted. It also corrects the sentence by changing 'regulated' to 'regulating'. "Regulating bicycles" is now an adjective phrase describing what the ordinance did, but it is not the verb of the sentence. Mandate, require, and grant are the verbs of the sentence, which is why they are in past tense, because the ordinance is no longer in effect.

That being said, the sentence as you wrote it is grammatically correct and expresses the same meaning -- . You could write it the way you listed and be perfectly fine, but unfortunately your construction wasn't an answer choice.