1 . Direction: Fill in each blank with a proper word chosen from the box. Each word can be used only once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

A. abolished             B. determining             C. entry                 D. eventually            E. exported F. facilitating            G. ideally                      H. inherited            I. relocation             J. shifting K. substantial

European Transport Systems

It is difficult to conceive of vigorous economic growth without an efficient transport system. Although modern information technologies can reduce the demand for physical transport by    1    teleworking and teleservices, the requirement for transport continues to increase. For passenger transport, the    2    factor is the spectacular growth in car use. The number of cars on European Union(EU)roads saw an increase of three million cars each year from 1990 to 2010, and in the next years the EU will see a further    3    increase in its fleet.

As far as goods transport is concerned, growth is due to a large extent to changes in the European economy and its system of production. In the last 20 years, as internal frontiers have been    4    , the EU has moved from a “stock” economy to a “flow“ economy.   This phenomenon has been emphasised by the    5    of some industries, particularly those which are labour intensive, to reduce production costs, even though the production site is hundreds or even thousands of kilometres away from the final assembly plant or away from users.

The strong economic growth expected in countries which are candidates for    6    to the EU will also increase transport flows, in particular road haulage traffic. In 1998, some of these countries already    7    more than twice their 1990 volumes and imported more than five times their 1990 volumes. And although many candidate countries    8    a transport system which encourages rail, the distribution between modes has tipped sharply in favour of road transport since the 1990s.

However, a new imperative—sustainable development—offers an opportunity for adapting the EU’s common transport policy. This objective, agreed by the Gothenburg European Council, has to be achieved by integrating environmental considerations into Community policies, and    9    the balance between modes of transport lies at the heart of its strategy. The ambitious objective can only be fully achieved by 2020, but proposed measures are nonetheless a first essential step towards a sustainable transport system which will    10    be in place in 30 years’ time.