Highways (General notions)
Highways are high-speed roads designed to connect major cities. There are many different types of highways. Highways differ primarily in the amount of access control they have and, therefore, in the amount of traffic they are designed to carry.
Highways with fully controlled access can handle the most traffic and are built to the highest construction standards. Interstate highways, freeways, and expressways are examples of fully controlled-access highways in the USA, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. Vehicles that enter or exit these types of highways can do so only at certain points along the highway, generally by using special entrance and exit ramps. The ramps allow vehicles to access the road without disturbing the flow of traffic. Incoming vehicles must merge with flowing traffic, and vehicles leaving the highway use exit ramps that guide them off the highway without blocking the traffic behind. Intersections with other roads are avoided by using either bridges known as overpasses to carry one roadway over another or short tunnel-like structures called underpasses to carry one roadway under another. Strips on the edges of highways, which are called shoulders, allow drivers of disabled vehicles to make repairs or await assistance without blocking traffic.
Highways with fully controlled access generally have two or more lanes for each direction of travel and often include medians (dividers in the middle of the road) to separate traffic moving in opposite directions.
In Europe, highways with fully controlled access are called motorways, motor-routes, or autobahns.
Some highways offer only partial control of access. These types of highways handle less traffic than do highways with fully controlled access. Highways with partially controlled access may intersect other roads at the same level (called at-grade), rather than using overpasses or underpasses. Vehicles can enter highways with partially controlled access at intersections rather than using ramps. However, the right-of-way is often given to one direction of travel, rather than requiring all traffic to stop at the intersection. Giving the right-of-way to one direction of traffic helps keep traffic moving at higher speeds, although typically not at speeds as high as those on a highway with fully controlled access. One benefit of highways with partially controlled access is that they are much cheaper to construct than highways with fully controlled access. Many U.S. and state highways are roads with partially controlled access.
German Autobahn
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Germany is famous for its high-speed freeways. These limited-access expressways, called autobahns, have a total length of about 11,000 km (6,800 miles). Tom McHugh/Photo Researchers, Inc.
Task 5
Restore the sentences. Consult the text above.
1.Highways differ primarily in….
2.…are built to the present-day construction standards.
3.…are examples of fully controlled-access highways.
4. In Europe, highways with fully controlled access are called….
5….allow traffic move at higher speeds.
6…. have overpasses and underpasses.
7 .…separate traffic moving in opposite directions.
8. Special entrance and exit ramps allow vehicles to access the road without.…
9….may intersect other roads at the same level
10. Shoulders on the edges of highways allow drivers….
11….is not as high as that on highways with fully controlled access.
12 ….are less expensive to build.
Task 6
Answer the following questions using the information from the text above.
1. What do we call high-speed roads connecting big cities?
2. How do highways differ?
3. Where can vehicles enter and exit highways with fully controlled access?
4. What are shoulders on the edges of highways provided for?
5. What is used on highways with fully controlled access to separate traffic moving in opposite directions?
6. Why are overpasses and underpasses so important?
7. What is the basic difference between highways with fully controlled access and those with partially controlled access?
Task 7
Find in the text the opposites to the words and word-combinations listed below.
1. To exit;
2. entrance ramp;
3. an incoming vehicle;
4. overpass;
5. expensive;
6. uncontrolled access.
Task 8
Fill in prepositions if necessary. Consult the text above.
1. Highways differ primarily .… the amount …. access control they have.
2. Highways .… fully controlled access and are built …. the highest construction standards.
3. Vehicles can enter ….highways ….fully controlled access only …. certain points.
4. The ramps allow vehicles to access the road … disturbing the flow … traffic.
5. Overpasses carry one roadway … another and underpasses carry one roadway .… another.
6. Shoulders …. the edges …. highways allow drivers .… disabled vehicles to make repairs …. blocking traffic.
7. Highways with partially controlled access may intersect .… other roads …. the same level.
8. Vehicles .… a highway …. fully controlled access moves …. high speeds.
Task 9
Transform the following sentences according to the model. Translate the sentences into Ukrainian (Russian).
Model
Cars and buses enter the motorway only at certain points. Do cars and buses enter the motorway only at certain points?
That road has a median.
Many European countries build autobahns to the highest construction standards.
Ramps allow vehicles to access the road without disturbing the flow of traffic.
The construction of motor-routes with partially controlled access doesn’t cost very much.
Road engineers design roads carrying much traffic.
Expressways usually have two shoulders on the edges.
Task 10
Translate into English.
1. Сучасні стандарти, згідно їз сучасними стандартами, будувати згідно із сучасними стандартами.
2. Естакада, тунель, мати естакади і тунелі.
3. Нахилений в’їзд, мати нахилені в’їзди та з’їзди.
4. Рівень, в одному рівні, перетинати магістраль в одному рівні.
5. Транспортний рух, швидкість транспортного руху, висока швидкість транспортного руху, підтримувати високу швидкість транспортного руху.
6. Узбіччя, на узбіччі, зупинятися на узбіччі.
7. Ремонт, терміновий ремонт, мати потребу в терміновому ремонті.
Task 11
Translate the sentences into English using the active vocabulary and the text above.
Високошвидкісні автомагістралі мають спеціальні нахилені в’їзди та з’їзди.
Автобани у Європі мають естакади і тунелі.
Багато автострад у США було побудовано відповідно до сучасних стандартів.
Ця дорога перетинає магістраль в одному рівні.
Регулювання на автострадах підтримує високу швидкість транспортного руху.
6. Автомобілі, що потребують термінового ремонту, мають зупинятися на узбіччі.
Task 12
Discuss advantages and disadvantages of highways with fully controlled access and those with partially controlled access.Use the information in the text above.