Answer:
The starting fee is $2.
Step-by-step explanation:
Provided:
Stops Price (dollars)
3 6.50
7 12.50
11 18.50
It is noted that the cost of a train ticket comprises an initial fee along with a fixed fee per stop.
Let's denote the initial cost as 'x'.
Let 'y' represent the constant fee.
This leads us to create the following equation;

According to the table:
For 3 stops, the price equals 6.50
Thus, we can formulate this equation;

Referring back to the table for;
For 7 stops, the cost amounts to 12.50
This similarly creates another equation;

By subtracting the first equation from the second, we obtain;

Inserting the value of y into the first equation results in;

This confirms that the initial fee is $2.