Problems of public transport

However crowded the roads are, British car owners usually find a reason not to switch to public transport. The buses are too slow, or the trains are too expensive, or no public services actually take them where they want to go. In many cases, these are just the excuses of people who really want to sit in their own cars with the radio on, and who blame others for creating the traffic jams. But there is also some truth in their criticisms. There has been a serious lack of government investment in transport, with predictable consequences.

The London Underground or the Tube, as Londoners call it, started in 1863 as the first underground line in the world, and is still the longest, with over 400 kilometres of lines. When it is working well, it is extremely quick and efficient. But those who use it every day complain of terrible delays when things go wrong. The electrical engineering is old, and it breaks down frequently. And government failed to invest the huge sums of money which would be needed to bring the Tube up to the 21st century standards.

One particular failure has been a cause of considerable embarrassment to the British since the opening of the Channel Tunnel. Eurostar trains from Paris travel at up to 300 kilometres per hour in France, but have to slow down to 80 kilometres per hour once in Britain because the high-speed line has not yet been built. Parliament only made the decision to build the line after the tunnel had opened. This sad story seems to symbolise all the country's transport problems.

TEXT WORK

Pronounce correctly and transcribe. Consult the dictionary if necessary.

Private, ownership, spread, phenomenon, psychological, human, carapace, quiet, wheel, phrase, fight, murder, hours, exhaust, figures, accident, vehicles, mature, neighbours, deaths, actually, serious, consequences, extremely, failure, cause.

2. Compare and mind the difference:

AmE

Gasoline or Gas (for short)

Gas pump

Kilometer

To rent a car

Driver

Hood

Trunk

Neighbor

To symbolize

BrE

Petrol

Petrol station

Kilometre

To hire a car

Motorist

Bonnet

Boot

Neighbour

To symbolise

Answer the questions.

1. When did private car ownership start growing rapidly?

2. Why did public transportation lose its dominant role?

3. Why did railways cut lines and stations?

4. Why was government happy to see the railway wither away?

5. Why did roads become overcrowded?

6. What was the solution for overcrowded roads?

7. What strange phenomenon occurred after building the new road?

8. What is M25? Why was it built? What happened to it immediately?

9. What psychological effect does car driving have on human beings?

10. What is "road rage" and why does it happen?

11. Why don't road accident figures increase with number of vehicles on the road?

12. What can you say about seat belt laws for vehicle drivers and passengers in Britain?

13. What side of the road do British drive on?

14. Do they plan to change? Why?

15. What other countries drive or used to drive on the left?

16. Why don't British car owners shift to public transport?

17. What does British transport lack seriously?

18. What is the common name of London Underground?

19. Does the Tube work according to the 21st century standards? Why?

20. What has been a cause of considerable embarrassment to the British since the Channel Tunnel was opened?

Give Russian equivalents to the following words and word combinations. Find and translate sentences with them in the text.

Railways wither away, private car ownership, small rural communities, roads became over-crowded, massive new motorway, Outer London, dramatic example, overloaded immediately, traffic jam, human being, aggressive shell, common theme, it was no longer a joke, a new phrase was coined, road rage, to commit a murder, obviously not good for people, road accident figures, mature culture of driving, better record, number of deaths per 10,000 vehicles, seat belt laws for vehicle drivers and passengers, to respect the laws, island nation, road traffic across the borders, however crowded the roads are, too slow, too expensive, the excuses of people, to blame others for creating the traffic jams, serious lack of government investment, terrible delays, when things go wrong, to fail to invest, to bring the Tube up to the 21st century standards, one particular failure, considerable embarrassment.