1 . In Spain, children and their families are riding bikes to school together in large groups. The program is called “bicibús” or bike bus. In Barcelona, the program started recently with only five children and grew quickly to hundreds of riders.
The Eixample bike bus begins around 8:25 every Friday morning. The path it will follow is always posted ahead of time, so everyone knows where to join. The bicibús starts off with just a few students and parents, with more and more joining as it travels along.
Most kids ride their bikes, but others ride motor bikes or use skates. Instead of riding in bike lanes (车道) or on sidewalks, the bicibús takes over the entire street. With music playing and bike bells ringing, the bicibús feels like a party.
Being able to ride with a crowd of kids is a big part of the fun. Nine-year-old Maria Pitarch says, “The best part of the bicibús is that we ride along and pick up my friends and we ride together. ”
The Eixample bicibús goes to several schools. When students reach their school, they leave the bus and park their bikes. Some parents have made the bicibús the way they get to work on Friday.
It was possible to bike to school in Eixample before, but it wasn’t really safe for kids. There are a few bike lanes, but there are also lots of cars.
Because one of the main roads used by the Eixample bicibús is busy, having about 20,000 cars and motorcycles every day, the local police are helping stop traffic by riding in front of the bicibús and behind it.
Parents are hoping that the bicibús will help change ideas about how people can get around in the city. They want the city to create wider, kid-friendly bike lanes that are separate from car traffic. They point out that the bicibús also helps cut down on pollution.
Already some other areas in Barcelona are also organizing bike buses. Some bike buses have even been organized in other countries.
1. What can we learn about the bicibús?| A．It is really a party. | B．It has a long history. |
| C．It is becoming popular. | D．It is simply made up of kids. |
| A．Learning skating on the way. | B．Riding with their friends. |
| C．Getting to know more kids. | D．Having a free time every day. |
| A．The bike lanes have been widened. |
| B．The police come to help with traffic. |
| C．Bike bells have been fixed to the bikes. |
| D．The number of bike lanes has been doubled. |
| A．Sports. | B．Travel. |
| C．Science. | D．Culture. |
2 . Accessible Adventures Near Global Airports
Adventure doesn’t have to mean inaccessible destinations. You may try one of these outdoor experiences. They’re all reasonably close to an airport, so your destinations are easy to reach.
Camp by Boat on California’s Anacapa Island
Airport: Los Angeles International Airport
Trips to Anacapa Island can be arranged year-round, and the rocky shores are popular places for camping and bird watching. This is truly remote, though—there are no goods, services, or accommodations on the island, so be prepared to be fully self-sufficient when you take a boat at the Channel Islands Harbor in Oxnard, just north of Los Angeles. From Los Angeles International Airport, you can take a bus for the scenic trip to the harbor.
Ski Snowy Slopes（斜坡）Just Outside Tokyo
Airport: Tokyo International Airport or Narita International Airport
It’s easy to find adventure just minutes after arriving in Japan, a country known for its bullet trains and efficient transportation. Make your way from either airport to Tokyo Station, and you’ll be just an hour and a half away from the snow-packed slopes of Gala Yuzawa.
Getting to the popular ski slopes is simple. It’s served by the bullet-train station, and you can buy tickets and rent equipment only a few steps from the stop. Gala Yuzawa can be crowded, but it also has everything you need for a winter adventure.
Ride the Great Southern Rail from Adelaide to Darwin
Airports: Adelaide Airport and Darwin International Airport
See the red soil of Australia on The Ghan, a train line that stretches from Adelaide to Darwin. This interstate passenger train follows the route of ancient camel drivers and provides out-of-this-world views. The train trip takes three or four days without any stops.
Both the initial and final train stations on this route are close to airports—Adelaide Parklands Terminal is just about 5 kilometers from Adelaide Airport and Darwin Railway Station is about 16 kilometers from Darwin International Airport.
1. How can you get to the Channel Islands Harbor from the airport?| A．By bus. | B．By boat. | C．By air. | D．By train. |
| A．Winter. | B．Spring. | C．Summer. | D．Autumn. |
| A．Dozens of kilometers. | B．Thousands of kilometers. |
| C．About five kilometers. | D．About sixteen kilometers. |
1. What happened to the woman’s flight?
| A．It failed to take off on time. |
| B．It was called off without notice. |
| C．It arrived about two hours earlier. |
| A．In a restaurant. | B．On a plane. | C．At the airport. |
| A．By car. | B．By bus. | C．By taxi. |
1. Where does the man most probably work?
| A．At an airport. | B．At a hotel. | C．At a travel agency. |
| A．Reagan National. | B．Dulles. | C．Baltimore-Washington. |
| A．To visit a friend. | B．To meet the man. | C．To go sightseeing. |
People need transportation to move from one place to another. As time went by, transportation methods improved. Especially after the invention of airplanes, they made travel more convenient and
The airplane
Today, airplanes have many different
Many things
7 . The state of Michigan, which is home to the first paved road in the country, may also become home to the first wireless electric vehicle (EV) charging road in the country. Governor Gretchen Whitmer recently announced the new project of developing the country's first wireless charging infrastructure on a public road.
An electrified road would save electric vehicle owners and public transportation agencies the need to stop vehicles to charge them constantly, and would support transportation in parts of the country with few to no electric vehicle charging stations.
According to government news outlet Route-Fifty, electrified charging roads use three types of technology. The first is an inductive power transfer (感应电力传输) from the road, which then sends power between a set of coils (线圈) in the roadway and a set of coils in the car. A second consideration is charging through a power transfer from the road to the car through a rail. Another option is overhead conductive (传导性的) charging that transfers power for charging through a connection to overhead lines which is often used for buses and trains.
“The needs for the vehicles will depend on the solution provided；however, the goal is to have the roadway used by all electric vehicle types,” a spokesperson from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation said. “If it's a success, the state of Michigan will review other locations to determine where they best fit the need.”
Michigan officials hope the charging road will provide an improvement to public transportation by charging electric buses and increased access to transportation in or near rural communities, and even potentially help to develop tourism in the area.
“The field of transportation is in the process of a transformation not experienced since the invention of the automobile,” Nadia Gkritza, a professor of Purdue University, said. "Through this project, we foresee opportunities to reduce emissions and near-road exposures to pollutants, coupled with other transportation innovations in shared mobility and automation that will shape data-driven policies encouraging advances."
1. What is a problem with driving electric vehicles according to the text?| A．There are no reliable safety measures for it. | B．EV drivers have to stop frequently to charge EVs. |
| C．EV charging stations are inaccessible in any place. | D．Most public transportation agencies are against it. |
| A．What technology is used to reform old buses and trains. |
| B．What construction is needed to improve electrified roads. |
| C．How electrified charging roads save electricity on vehicles. |
| D．How charging vehicles on electrified roads can be realized. |
| A．It can save much money on public transportation. | B．It can be the inspiration for new electric vehicles. |
| C．It can promote the development of local economy. | D．It can make public transportation free in the future. |
| A．Provide evidence. | B．Explain a concept. | C．Make evaluations. | D．Offer suggestions. |
8 . No one will ever know for sure what happened in those minutes before the helicopter carrying Kobe Bryant, his l3-year-old daughter. and seven other people fell into a hillside, killing everyone on board. It will take months for safety investigators to figure out what probably went wrong here. In the meantime, what this horrific crash should do is make safety investigators and national regulators take a step back and look at helicopter safety in general.
One piece of equipment lacking in this otherwise well-equipped helicopter was a terrain awareness warning system, which gives pilots visual and audible warnings when they are flying near obstacles. After a helicopter carrying eight passengers crashed into the Gulf of Mexico in 2004, the National Transportation Safety Board(NTSB) repeatedly urged the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to require terrain awareness systems on all commercial helicopters. But the FAA has never accepted that recommendation.
The NTSB also called for all emergency medical service helicopters and airplanes to have these safety systems on board. The FAA accepted the safety board's recommendation for air ambulances, noting that emergency missions are often flown in places not well known to the pilots. But an FAA spokesperson says the circumstances are different for non-emergency flights. as commercial helicopter pilots generally fly in populated places with numerous paths and landing points. According to the spokesperson, the FAA has cooperated with the industry on improving safety through new technology and policy changes. And the number of fatal accidents has declined dramatically over the last two. decades. That's great, but' it's nevertheless troubling that the NTSB's recommendation has gone largely ignored by the FAA.
After the recent crash renewed talk of terrain awareness systems, there's been massive resistance from old helicopter pilots who believe it to be a dangerous distraction when they are flying low—as helicopters often do—with good visibility. Constant audible warnings of obstacles that the pilots can see and are aware of are nothing but an annoyance, they claim.
Nevertheless, the FAA should reconsider its decision because it would give commercial pilots and their passengers another tool to enhance their safety. In fact, terrain awareness systems have been standard equipment in every Sikorsky S-76 made since 2005. The safety of everyone flying in dated commercial helicopters should be just as important.
1. Why did the author mention Kobe Bryant's case?| A．To show the value of safety equipment. | B．To express his sorrows for the incident. |
| C．To indicate that flights are dangerous. | D．To introduce the readers to helicopters. |
| A．They require pilots with varying skills | B．Service helicopters carry more people. |
| C．They cover different routes and areas. | D．Service helicopters often fly at night. |
| A．Frightened. | B．Interested. | C．Optimistic. | D．Distrustful. |
| A．Pilots should be trained for emergencies. | B．We should be concerned about air safety. |
| C．The terrain awareness system is useful. | D．FAA is to be blamed for plane accidents |
| A．By train. | B．By bus. | C．By air. |
1. What does the man say about electric energy?
| A．It’s cheaper. | B．It’s more convenient. | C．It pollutes less. |
| A．China. | B．Germany. | C．Japan. |
| A．Everyone will use public transport. |
| B．There will be bicycles everywhere. |
| C．Electric cars will replace gas cars. |
