Part 1
“This morning, it took me 40 minutes to go downtown. More roadworks on the A10!”
“Oh really? It took me over an hour. There was an accident on the M11.”
How often have you heard these conversations? How often do we get stuck② in traffic jams③? How often do we arrive at work or school, stressed out④, tired and angry? For many people, the answer is every day. But personal anger and stress are nothing compared to⑤ the real costs socially. Here are some figures about Britain:
·In the last 20 years, the number of cars on the roads has gone up by 25%. There are now 32 million cars.
·Over the last decade⑥, an average of 2,500 people have died every year in vehicle accidents.
·Traffic is one of the major causes of global warming and climate change, as car engines produce various types of greenhouse gases⑦.
·Almost 30,000 deaths per year are caused by air pollution.
·Some types of cancer are related⑧ to traffic pollution.,
①destruction n. 破坏,毁坏
②stuck adj. 卡住的,无法移动的
get stuck in 陷入
③jam n. 拥挤,堵塞;果酱
traffic jam 交通堵塞
④stressed out 焦虑的
⑤compared to 比起
⑥decade n. 十年,十年期
⑦gas n. 气,气体
⑧relate vi. 相联系,有关联
be related to 与……有关联
[参考译文]第1部分
“今天早上,我花了40分钟去市中心。A10公路上的很多地方在施工!”
“真的吗?我花了一个多小时。 M11公路上发生了一起事故。”
这样的谈话你多久听到一次?有多少次我们碰到交通阻塞而动弹不得?又有多少次,当我们抵达工作地点或者学校时感到心力交瘁、心烦气躁呢?对很多人来说,答案是每天。但是和真正的社会损失相比,个人的愤怒和焦虑根本不值一提。以下是一些关于英国的数据:
•在过去的20年里,道路上的汽车数量增加了25%。现在有3200万辆汽车。,•在过去10年中,每年平均有2,500人死于交通事故。
•交通是造成全球变暖和气候变化的主要原因之一,因为汽车发动机会产生各类温室气体。
•每年有近3万人死于空气污染。
•多种癌症与交通污染有关。