Exercise 2

Listen and translate the following sentences in which the new words and word combinations are used.

1. In Ukraine railroads are a major mode of transportation.

2. Because the natural waterways lie from north to south the east-west traffic must be carried by land transportation in which railways play the dominant role.

3. The entire railway network is divided into 6 railways (regional divisions).

4. The other main junctions with five lines each were Stanislav, Stryi and Ternopil.

5. By 1913 Ukraine had approx 15, 600 km of rails some of them double-track trunk lines.

6. By 1953 the railway network had been expanded and improved.

7. Modern tracks consisting of heavier rails, a solid ballast-type bed, concrete ties have a higher load capacity.

8. Major repair shops are located in Lugansk, Popasna, Dnipropetrovsk, Odesa, Lviv and Stryi.

9. Suburban traffic has its own problems.

10. Compared with other modes of transport railways have a number of essential advantages - lower power consumption, high speed of freight delivery, comparatively low cost of transportation and independence of seasonal or climatic conditions.

11. At present the electrified railway network together with diesel traction carry the most part of the total traffic.

12. The electrification and dieselization of traffic has allowed a considerable increase in capacity and traffic ability of the railways.

13. The program of development is aimed at further improvement of effectiveness and introduction of new technologies and ensuring competitiveness of railway transport.

14. Computers are employed to prepare daily reports about the work of the railway network.

Exercise 3

Listen to the following sentences and give English equivalents for the Ukrainian words and word combinations given in brackets.

1. The lower cost of (будівництва та експлуатації залізниць) gives them an advantage over motor vehicle transport

2. The entire railway network is divided into 6 (регіональних частин); They are subdivided into 26 (відділень залізниці)

3. The first railroad line in Ukraine was built in 1861, (поєднавши) Lviv, Cracow and Vienna.

4. From 1880 to 1890 numerous (магістралі) were constructed (щоб поєднати) Donetsk coal region with Kryvyi Rig Iron-ore Basin.

5. Modern tracks consisting of heavier rails, a solid ballast-type (основа) and deep side (дренажні канави) have a higher load capacity.

6. More powerful locomotives make it possible (перевозити вантажі) at higher speeds.

7. Тhe Ukrainian system suffers less from (застарілий рухомий склад) than managerial incompetence.

8. (Приміский рух) has its own problems.

9. A number of short lines in the heavily industrialized Dnieper-Donetsk region were open (для того, щоб ослабити напруженість) on the trunk lines.

10. All these factors determine the role of railways in Ukraine as (головний вид транспорту).

Exercise 4

Read and translate the text

Прочитайте та перекладіть основний текст теми.

Part 1 Ukrainian Railroads

1 In Ukraine railroads are a major mode of transportation. Because the natural waterways lie from north to south the east-west traffic must be carried by land transportation in which railways play the dominant role. The lower cost of railroad building and maintenance gives them an advantage over motor vehicle transport.

The Ukrainian Railways have a well-developed infrastructure that meets world standards. They handle 70 per cent of all nation’s cargo transfers. The railway transport of Ukraine stands out among other types of transport.

The entire railway network is divided into 6 railways (regional divisions): Donetsk, Prydniprovska, Southern, Lviv, Southwestern and Odesa. They are subdivided into 26 railway divisions.

2 Until the break-up of the Soviet Union, the Ukrainian railways were an integral part of its broad-gauge network. In the decade since independence in 1991, it has evolved technically and operationally in accordance with the changing national political and economic framework, in which road competition has increased significantly, and some minor rail services have been withdrawn. Nevertheless they remain an important part of the national transport infrastructure, and investment continues, notably in renovating major stations. _;

3 It is clear that transport is of great importance in the progress of any state. In the development of the national economy of Ukraine railroad transport plays an important role. Compared with other modes of transport railways have a number of essential advantages - lower power consumption, high speed of freight delivery, comparatively low cost of transportation and independence of seasonal or climatic conditions. All these factors determine the role of railways in Ukraine as the main mode of transport.

4 The total length of Ukrainian railroads at present is 30,000 kilometers with almost 8,000 kilometers of electrifies lines. Electrification is rightly considered the back-bone of technical progress in rail transport. Practically all rail transport is now either electrically or diesel powered. At present the electrified railway network together with diesel traction carry the most part of the total traffic. The electrification and dieselization of traffic has allowed a considerable increase in capacity and trafficability of the railways. “Ukrzaliznytsa” has gradually elaborated a reliable mechanism of cooperation with all railway administration of the CIS and other neighbouring European countries.

5 The strategic priorities in the policy of railway development in Ukraine for the nearest future is renovation and technical re-equipment of the rolling stock, improvement of the technical level and quality of construction and maintenance of railroads, introduction of modern transport technologies and integration of Ukrainian transport system into the European and the world ones. The program of development is aimed at further improvement of effectiveness and introduction of new technologies and ensuring competitiveness of railway transport. This program includes:

• High-speed line development along the main directions of Ukraine. The realization of the first stage of the program will provide high speed travels of passenger trains between Kiev and big cities of Ukraine. In 2002 and 2004 Ukrzaliznytsa inaugurated first high-speed lines Kiev-Kharkiv and Kiev-Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkiv-Simferopol.

• Program of communication development and based on it new technologies development. This program is aimed to create modern information systems and means of communication, to improve passenger servicing and provide information services on a real time basis.

• Program on development of transport corridors to attract more transit freights. The program presupposes engaging more transit freights that now go by sea from Asia to Europe by means of flexible tariff policy, applying combined intermodal traffics and engaging freights from the Asia-Europe direction. Talking about the corridors we should mention that Ukraine is part of Development Plan of Priority Transport Corridors in Central and Eastern Europe. Three such corridors and their branch lines are crossing the territory of Ukraine.

• Program on the rolling stock development. It is aimed at developing and production of new locomotives and carriages, further modernization of freight cars and coaches, diesel and electric trains to increase the speed, quality and reliability of railway services. Production and modernization of the rolling stock will be provided by Ukrainian producers.

• Program of improvement of technical condition of track servicing on Ukrainian railways. The new technologies of gauge maintenance and servicing are applied to make it meet the world standards.

6 Rail research is focused on increasing energy efficiency and in this way, reducing consumption, as well as on developing very low pollution diesel motive power, and on lowering noise. Sound reduction, mainly from wagons is a condition that determines acceptance of additional rail traffic by trackside population.

7 Computerization takes place on the railroads of Ukraine. Automated control systems and electronic computers are used on railways. Computers are employed to prepare daily reports about the work of the railway network. They are used for col­lecting, transmitting and processing data for goods traffic management, for calculation of traction data for automatic processing of rolling stock data, for the preparation of train movement graphs, for electronic seat reservation, for the distribution of empty wagons and other calculations.

8 One of the most important tasks now for railway transport is to bring it into line with unified European and world standards and practices to complete effectively in the new global economy, which no longer recognizes national boundaries.

The EU and other countries (Ukraine is among them) have determined to push through radical reforms and new projects and bring new blood into European rail freight operations and encourage the development of pan-European rail freight operators.

9 The identification and modernization of nine major corridors in Eastern Europe will improve rail’s ability to carry freight and passenger efficiency. These corridors will enable trains to run more efficiently over long distances and to win back market shares that naturally belong to rail. The Ukrainian section of 627 km belongs to the Corridor III from Lviv to Kiev.

In present day Ukraine the main task of railways is to raise their efficiency and improve the quality of work. The efforts of all the railwaymen of Ukraine are aimed at the solution of these tasks.