Vocabulary notes

suburban пригородный

fringe край; кайма

congestion перегруженность, затор (уличного движения)

to alleviate облегчать; смягчать

bystander свидетель; наблюдатель

to adjoin примыкать, граничить

to assess облагать налогом; штрафовать

option выбор

to estimate оценивать

to handle управлять, регулировать

feasible вероятный, возможный

to refine облагораживать; усовершенствовать

terrain местность, территория

alignment выравнивание, регулировка

shoulder обочина (дороги)

EXERCISES

I. Read the following text, translate it and note the main facts.

II. Suggest the Russian equivalents:

low-density cities; long-term solutions; proper pricing; to meet needs; future extensions; approximately proportional; key variables; parking provisions; environmental benefits; three-dimensional profiles; traffic lane; total right-of-way width.

III. Give explanations in English:

travel needs

comfort and convenience of the travelling public

development of a major road system

congestion

traffic lane

shoulder

IV. Annotate the text in Russian.

Building a road

First, the earth is removed using bulldozers and diggers.

Then the ground is levelled. This is done by cutting the top layer until it is flat and level.

Next a layer of gravel (approximately 300 mm thick) is spread over the ground.

Finally the top layer is added. There are two main types: blacktop and concrete. If it is a blacktop road, layers of hot tar-macadam are poured onto the gravel and pressed down using rollers. The total layer of blacktop materials is approximately 300 mm thick. If it is a concrete road, the concrete is laid on top of the gravel. The concrete slabs are usually approximately 250 mm thick and 4,5 m long.

EXERCISES

I. Read the text and follow the information.

II. What are (a) - (n)? Use words and numbers from the passage.

Examples: (a) ground

(d) 300 mm

III. Answer these questions:

1. How do you make the ground flat and level?

2. How is the tar-macadam pressed down?

3. How thick is a concrete road (down to ground level)?

4. What equipment do you use to move earth away?

CAR

The story of the car is one of the most important and exciting chapters in the history of transport. World-wide, there are more than 400 million passenger cars and over 100 million light trucks such as vans and pick-ups. Million of people use their cars to help them earn a living or to travel for pleasure. People in the United States often refer to cars as automobiles. In Britain and many other countries, they are sometimes called motorcars.

Most of the world’s cars are in the United States, Canada, and Western Europe. Ways of life have changed greatly in all those countries because of the car. Farm families no longer live lonely lives. In most countries, their cars put them within reach of cities and towns. Increased mobility for all types of people has led to greater enjoyment of leisure time. The development of the car has meant that city dwellers can travel into the country for relaxing break, and people can visit relatives living in remote or distant areas.

The wide use of the car has brought about many features of life today. Many of these features are associated with the United States, the country in which widespread use of the car first developed. They include out-of-town shopping centers, motels, and several kinds of drive-ins including restaurants, banks, and cinemas. Huge roads and motorways, built mainly for cars, are found in many countries. Therefore people had cars to drive; they generally walked or rode bicycles when travelling short distances. Most long-distance travel was by railway, tram, or some kind of horse-drawn carriage. In fact, the early cars were sometimes called “horseless carriages”.

The origin of the car can be traced to Europe. But it became a major form of transportation first in the United States. Most European cars were built by hand, and were expensive. Only rich people could afford them. In early 1900s, Ransom E. Olds, Henry Ford, and other pioneers began mass-producing cars. Although some people disliked the “horseless carriage”, many welcomed the introduction of the new machine because it would replace horse-drawn carriages.

Today, the United States has about 130 million cars, more than any other country. In the U.S.A., Australia, France, and western Germany there is approximately one car to every two people. The United Kingdom has approximately one car for every three and Japan one for every four.

Car manufacture is one of the world’s major industries producing more than 30 million cars each year. Japan and the United States together produce about half of the world’s output. Other important car manufacturing countries include Germany, France, Italy, and Spain. Australia, the Czech Republic, India, South Korea, Malaysia, Sweden and the United Kingdom also have motor industries.

Many developing nations want to set up car industries. This is because it generates and supports a wide range of businesses, and stimulates economic growth. The car industry is an important customer of other industries, such as steel. Millions of people are employed in businesses connected with cars, such as showrooms, garages, and petrol stations.

The car has brought much employment, and introduced many benefits in everyday life. But it has also brought many problems. Traffic congestion, especially in major cities, has reduced the benefits from car ownership and has brought problems of noise and pollution.

Countries without a car industry have economic problems resulting from the high cost of car imports. Car accidents have now become a major cause of death or injury throughout the world.

Problems of car use have been addressed in a number of ways in recent years. Pollution has been reduced in many places by laws regulating car design. Engineers have found ways of building safer roads, and car manufacturers have improved car safety features. Laws in many countries have forced drivers to use car safety features such as seat belts.

The importance of cars

The development of cars has had an enormous effect on people’s way of life throughout much of the world. Probably no other invention, discovery or technological advance has created greater or more rapid changes in society.