Is traffic a big problem where you live? Increased cycling may be the answer. Where are the best places to live and cycle? A new report lists the best bike—friendly cities around the world.
Top of the list is Amsterdam, the bike capital of the world. An incredible 40% of all traffic movements are by bicycle. There’s an extensive network of safe, fast and comfortable cycle routes. Copenhagen, the city of bikes, is a city where 32% of workers cycle to work because it’s fast and easy. Berlin is another European city that’s great for cycling. The city has about 80 kilometres of bike lanes, and 50kilometres of pavement paths. Cycling accounts for 12% of total street traffic.
Barcelona has been praised for its cycle service “Bicing”. It’s a bicycle service that allows users to take bicycles from any of the 100 stations spread around the city. Later, they can leave them at any other bike station inside the urban area of the city. The city has created a “green ring” that surrounds the city area with a bike path. There are 3,250 parking spaces for bikes at street level at present. Barcelona City is also building a new underground car park for bicycles.
The UK has its cycle friendly cities too. Bristol is the birthplace of “Sustrans” the cycle-route charity which was formed 30 years ago. One of their projects was turning an old rail line between Bristol and Bath into a bike route. Other bike friendly cities in the UK include Cambridge and York. Cambridge is an old city but has still managed to build good cycle infrastructure (基础设施), and cyclists are considered at every stage of any new developments.
Bicycle is a most popular means of transportation in China. Nowadays, riding a bicycle is also a good way to support low-carbon living. Beijing can be one of the best bike-friendly cities in China. There are many riding routes in Beijing for outdoor-lovers to explore. Cyclists can get close enough to experience the history and culture of Beijing, including the Forbidden City, Drum Tower, the Water Cube etc.
1. What are the bike-friendly cities mentioned in the passage?2. What makes Amsterdam the bike capital of the world?
3. Please decide which part is false in the following statement, then underline it and explain why.
·Cyclists can leave their bikes anywhere in Barcelona.
4. As far as you know, what has been done to make Beijing a bike-friendly city?
相似题推荐
【推荐1】Four of the Top 10 Fastest Bullet Trains in the World 2023
FUXING HAO CR400AF/BF-CHINA, 249 MPH
The world’s fastest long-distance standard train is the Fuxing Hao CR400. It runs between Shanghai and Beijing in just five hours, with a capacity of over 550 passengers. Known as “Dolphin Blue” and “Golden Phoenix” are the two versions AF and BF, slightly different from each other. Fuxing Hao debuted(首秀)in 2016 and lowered its sibling Harmony 380 by 13 mph to second place.
EUROSTAR E320-THE UNITED KINGDOM, 200 MPH
In 2015, Siemens launched the Eurostar E320, whose interiors were designed by famous Pininfarina Italian stylists. The train will easily accommodate 900 people, 20 more than Eurostar E300. Eurostar is remarkably environmentally sustainable, with 90 percent fewer emissions per passenger than London’s flight to Paris.
TALGO 350-SPAIN, 217 MPH
Built by Patentes Talgo, the Spanish Talgo 350 runs between Madrid and Barcelona. In Spanish, the train has a nickname, ‘Pato,’ meaning duck. This is because of the raised nose cone(圆锥形)similar to a duckbill. There are multiple classes for seats: Club(with 14-26 seats), First(with 26 seats)and Coach(with 36 seats). Each seat comes with lamps for reading and laptop and mobile phone charging power points.
AGV ITALO-ITALY, 223 MPH
It has the distinction of being the fastest train in Europe at 223 mph. Nicknamed “Ferrari of the tracks,’ the plum red trains are operated by Nuovo Trasporto Viaggiatori, a company led by Luca Cordero di Montezemolo, the former president of Ferrari. The compartments in it are 9 feet tall, making it easier to navigate with baggage, and there are luxurious leather seats also in the general compartments.
1. Which of the following is the fastest train?| A．Fuxing Hao CR400. | B．Eurostar E320. |
| C．Talgo 350. | D．Agv Italo. |
| A．750. | B．880. |
| C．900. | D．920. |
| A．Their own nickname. | B．Strange shapes. |
| C．Political backgrounds. | D．Large seats. |
【推荐2】Off-Peak fares are cheaper tickets for traveling on trains that are less busy, offering good value for money. The tickets may require you to travel at specific times of day, days of the week or on a specific route. Where there is more than one Off-Peak fare for a journey, the cheaper fare is called Super Off-Peak.
You can buy Off-Peak tickets any time before you travel, either online or at a local station. The travel restrictions for your Off-Peak ticket will depend on the journey you are making. The tickets must be used on the date shown on the ticket. For Off-Peak return tickets, related journeys must be made on the date shown on your ticket as well.
Children aged five to fifteen get a 50% discount for all Off-Peak fares. Up to 2 children under 5 years can travel free with each fare paying adult. Railcard holders get l/3 off all Standard Class Off-Peak fares. Senior, and disabled Railcard holders also get l/3 off all First Class Off Peak fares. Please note that minimum fares and time restrictions may apply to tickets bought with a Railcard.
If you plan on a train trip with friends or your family, you may get group travel discounts. Three or four can travel for the price of just two adults-leaving everyone more money to spend on the day out! If you are traveling in a group of ten or more at Off-Peak times, you may be able to obtain a further discount through the train company you are traveling with. Contact the train company directly and be aware that you may need to book tickets in advance.
For more information, please visit www.nationalrail.co.uk.
1. An Off-Peak ticket differs from other tickets in .| A．its good value for money | B．its convenience |
| C．the specific trains | D．travel schedules |
| A．￡6. | B．￡18. |
| C．￡7. | D．￡12. |
| A．becoming a VIP | B．traveling at rush time |
| C．buying tickets online | D．getting group travel discounts |
| A．An announcement. | B．A ticket booking guide. |
| C．A business report. | D．A travel review. |
【推荐3】Recently, a company called SkyDrive gave a test of its new flying car, the SD-03. The small car flew at an altitude of around 6 feet around up to four minutes. The SD-03 is powered by batteries and has 8 motors, which lift it straight off the ground. Since flying cars don’t use runways, they need to be able to take off and land by going straight up or down. Its breakthrough was that a pilot was on board. Tomohiro Fukuzawa, who leads SkyDrive, said, “Of the world’s more than 100 flying car projects, only a handful has succeeded with a person on board.”
The world’s leading companies are investing (投资) heavily to work on more advanced flying cars of their own. That includes airplane makers like Airbus and Boeing, car makers like Toyota, Hyundai, and Porsche, and ride services like Uber. Some governments, including Japan’s, are supporting the idea, hoping that in the future, flying cars will be useful for short trips like taxi rides in cities. Flying cars could also save time in emergencies, and help reach places that can’t be reached by road.
However, controlling a flying car is so complex that most people won’t be able to do it. Even SkyDrive’s test flight was kept stable by an automatic computer system, and a backup team stood ready to control the car from the ground. Besides, safety is a major problem. What happens when a motor fails? That’s one reason the SD-03 has eight motors — as backups. All realities have led many companies to take a wait-and-see approach to developing flying cars. But people who believe in flying cars point out that cars and airplanes faced lots of challenges at first, too and that with time, many of the big problems were settled eventually.
Mr. Fukuzawa wants SkyDrive to be able to fly two passengers on trips of up to 3 miles by 2023. By 2050, he hopes people will be able to fly anywhere inside Tokyo in just 10 minutes. “I think flying cars will become normal in the near future,” he says.
1. What made the SD-03’s test flight by SkyDrive special?| A．It was its first manned flying car. | B．It landed without using a runway. |
| C．It flew much longer than expected. | D．It was powered by batteries. |
| A．Developing it independently. | B．Uniting to design it together. |
| C．Promoting it all over the world. | D．Persuading governments to invest it. |
| A．The designs. | B．Future tendencies. |
| C．Different comments. | D．The challenges. |
| A．Skeptical. | B．Confident. | C．Objective. | D．Conservative. |
