All big cities have problems with traffic jams.
所有大城市都面臨塞車問題。
Being stuck in a traffic jam is perhaps the worst thing that can happen at the end of a long day. It's a problem that affects commuters in major cities all over the world. In some of the worst affected cities, commuters spend two to three hours each day traveling to and from work. Motorists on China National Highway 110 were even jammed for two weeks in August of 2010. Needless to say, there has been no shortage of methods aimed at solving traffic jams.
London has one of the world's most comprehensive schemes for reducing traffic going into the city's bustling central district. In 2003, a congestion charge was introduced for vehicles entering the city center between 7:00 AM and 6:00 PM on weekdays. The charge is equal to NT$500 per day, and motorists can pay monthly via an automated system which detects how many times their cars enter the congestion zone and deducts the fees from their registered accounts. They hope that the traffic would be reduced substantially as people relied more on public transportation. However, even though the congestion dropped 30 percent during the first three years, the current level is back to what it was before the scheme was implemented.
The Netherlands, with one of the most congested traffic zones in Europe, is planning to put into practice a pay-per-kilometer scheme, where motorists will be monitored by GPS and charged according to the distances they drive. In Beijing, a monthly lottery issuing a limited number of new vehicle license plates to hopeful car owners attempts to keep the capital free of congestion. Traffic jams are here to stay, but cities are working on ways to reduce them.
1. What problem did Chinese motorists face in August of 2010?
(A) A 30 percent increase in gas prices.
(B) A traffic jam that lasted 14 days on a major highway.
(C) A suspension of Beijing's monthly lottery for new license plates.
(D) A charge on all vehicles entering the capital.
2. What did London do to reduce traffic?
(A) Banned all use of private cars on the weekdays.
(B) Held a lottery for those wanting to enter the city during the week.
(C) Gave each resident a free bicycle to encourage cycling to work.
(D) Introduced a special daily charge for driving a car into the city.
3. Which of the following statements is true?
(A) It costs NT$500 to drive a car into Beijing.
(B) Only in Asia and Europe are traffic jams a problem.
(C) The Netherlands has one of Europe's most congested traffic areas.
(D) London's congestion charge has had a lasting effect on its traffic problem.
精解字詞片語
1.be stuck in... 被困在……中
例: Tina was late this morning because she was stuck in a traffic jam.
（蒂娜今早遲到是因為她被困在車陣中。）
2.commuter n. 通勤者
commute vi. 通勤
commute from A to B
= commute between A and B
在 A 地與 B 地之間來回通勤
例: Jim commutes from his apartment to his office by car every day.
（吉姆每天開車在公寓和辦公室之間通勤。）
3.Needless to say, S + V 不用說，……
= It goes without saying + that 子句
例: Needless to say, honesty is the best policy.
（不用說，誠實是上策。）
4.bustling a. 熙攘的，忙亂的
例: The bustling shopping center is where many teenagers hang out after school.
（這座熙攘的購物中心是許多青少年放學後閒晃的去處。）
5.introduce vt. 推行；採用；引進
be introduced to... 被引進……
例: Our company has recently introduced a new security system.
（我們公司最近採用了一套新的保全系統。）
例: Pineapples were introduced to Hawaii in the early 19th century.
（鳳梨於 19 世紀初被引進夏威夷。）
6.be equal to... 等於……
例: This box is equal to that one in size.
（這只箱子與那只大小相同。）
7.detect vt. 偵測；發現
例: The police dog detected drugs in the man's luggage.
（這隻警犬在該男子的行李中發現毒品。）
8.deduct vt. 扣除
deduct A from B 把 A 從 B 中扣除
例: Dad deducted the price of the window I broke from my allowance.
（爸爸從我的零用錢中扣除被我打破的窗戶費用。）
9.register vt. & vi. 登錄，登記；註冊
register for... 登記∕報名∕註冊（參加）……
例: Gary registered the car in his wife's name.
（蓋瑞將這輛車登記在老婆名下。）
例: What classes are you registering for this semester, Joe?
（喬，你這學期登記上哪些課？）
10.substantially adv. 相當多地
例: The workload this month is substantially greater than that of last.
（這個月的工作量比上個月多很多。）
11.rely on... 依賴∕依靠……
例: Don't rely on Ted for everything. He won't always be there for you.
（別事事都倚賴泰德。他不會永遠都在你身邊。）
12.implement vt. 實施，執行
例: At the present time, this program will only be implemented locally.
（目前這項方案只會在地方上執行。）
13.put into practice.../put...into practice
把……付諸實行
例: I think it will be difficult to put your ideas into practice.
（我認為你的點子實行起來會很困難。）
14.monitor vt. 監控，監測
例: The police are closely monitoring the suspect's phone calls.
（警方正密切監聽該嫌犯的電話。）
15.issue vt. 發佈，發行
例: The legislator has issued a statement denying any involvement in the scandal.
（那名立委已發表聲明否認涉入該醜聞案。）
16.free of... 免於……；無……的
例: The air in the countryside is free of toxic fumes.
（鄉間的空氣沒有有毒的廢氣。）
17.suspension n. 暫停，中止
suspend vt. 使暫時停止，使中止
例: Construction on that road was suspended for a few days during the typhoon.
（颱風期間，那條道路的工程中斷了幾天。）
18.have an effect on... 對……有影響∕作用
例: These pills didn't have any effect on Linda because she was too sick.
（那些藥丸對琳達沒有作用，因為她病得太嚴重了。）
單字小舖
1.traffic jam n. 塞車，交通阻塞（可數名詞）
jam n. 堵塞，擁擠 & vt. 使擁塞
2.motorist n. 開車的人，駕駛人
3.shortage n. 缺少，不足
4.comprehensive a. 廣泛的
5.scheme n. 計劃，方案
6.district n. 市區；地區，區域
7.congestion n. 擁塞
traffic congestion 交通阻塞現象（不可數）
8.weekday n. 平日，工作日
9.automated a. 自動化的，機械化的
10.congested a. 擁塞的
11.lottery n. 抽籤
12.license plate n. 車牌
13.cycle vi. 騎腳踏車
14.lasting a. 持久的，長久的
中文翻譯
在漫長的一天後，或許沒有比卡在車陣中更糟的情況了。這個問題影響著全世界各大城市的通勤族。在一些塞車最嚴重的城市中，通勤者每天上下班得花上 2 到 3 個小時。在中國，2010 年 8 月開車上 110 國道的駕駛人甚至塞了整整 2 個星期。不用說，各地方無不絞盡腦汁想解決塞車問題。
為減少繁忙市中心區的交通擁塞，倫敦有著全世界最全面的方案之一。該市在 2003 年推行塞車費，凡在平日早上 7 點到晚上 6 點進入市中心的車輛都要繳交這項費用。每天的塞車費折合新台幣 500 元，駕駛人可以採月繳制，由自動化系統偵測車輛進入擁塞區的次數，再從駕駛人登記的帳戶中扣款。倫敦希望當人們較常搭乘大眾交通工具後，交通情況會大幅改善。不過，即使前 3 年交通擁塞減少了百分之三十，但目前的交通又回到方案實行前的情況。
1. 在 2010 年 8 月，中國的駕駛人面臨了什麼問題？
(A) 汽油費用增加了百分之三十。
(B) 在一條主要公路上，塞車情況持續了14 天。
(C) 北京每個月抽新車牌的計劃暫停。
(D) 對所有進入首都的車輛課稅。
題解: 根據本文第 1 段，在中國，2010 年 8 月開車上 110 國道的駕駛人塞了整整 2 個星期的車，可知 (B) 為正選。
2. 倫敦採取了什麼措施減少交通擁塞？
(A) 平日禁止所有自用車輛上路。
(B) 為週間想進城的駕駛人舉辦抽籤。
(C) 發給每位市民 1 輛免費的腳踏車，鼓勵他們騎車上班。
(D) 針對開車進城的駕駛人推行 1 項特別的每日繳費制度。
題解: 根據本文第 2 段，倫敦在 2003 年推行塞車費，凡在平日早上 7 點到晚上 6 點進入市中心的車輛都要繳交，故選 (D)。
3. 下列敘述何者正確？
(A) 開車進北京需花費台幣 500 元。（是倫敦才對）
(B) 塞車只有在亞洲和歐洲才是個問題。（是全世界各大城市的問題）
(C) 荷蘭有全歐洲最擁塞的交通區之一。
(D) 倫敦的塞車費對交通問題有持續的效果。（在實施塞車費的前 3 年，倫敦的交通擁塞因此減少了百分之三十，但目前的交通又回到實行前的情況）
題解: 根據本文第 3 段，荷蘭有著全歐洲最擁塞的交通區之一，故 (C) 為正選。
答案：1. (B) 2. (D) 3. (C)
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