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Ex. 9. Agree with the following statements, using words from the box synonymous with the underlined words.
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Model: He doesn’t have a job, does he? No, he’s unemployed.
| unemployed impolite irresponsible illegal undressed misunderstanding impatient impossible illegible unfriendly invisible untidy |
1. It’s against the law, isn’t it? Oh yes, …
2. His room is always in a mess, isn’t it? Yes, …
3. He took off his clothes! Yes, …
4. This handwriting is impossible to read. Yes I know, …
5. She can never wait for five minutes, can she? No, …
6. I thought it was rude, didn’t you? Yes, it was very …
7. I can’t see where my jacket was mended. You are right, the repair is completely …
8. He went out and left those two children alone. Oh, it was very …
9. She says it can’t be done, but I don’t accept that. Yes, nothing is …
10. Nobody at the party talked to us. Oh, they were very …
11. I think you have mistaken. I didn't order all these books. Sorry, there must have been some …
Ex. 10. A. Match the words and phrases on the left with their translation on the right.
1.  inner city
2. rush-hour traffic jam
3. baggage counter
4. to relieve traffic congestion
5. government regulations
6. state boundaries
7. oil leak
8. to face
| a) постановления правительства b) утечка нефти c) стоять перед лицом, сталкиваться d) освобождать движение от пробок на дорогах e) пробка на дороге в час-пик f) стойка выдачи багажа (в аэропорту) g) границы штата h) бедный район |
B. Translate the following sentences.
1. Suburban life styles are very different from those in the inner city. 2. The explosion was caused by an oil leak in the main line. 3. We were stuck in a rush-hour traffic jam for two hours. 4. Before boarding, you may need to deposit your bags and/or items you are carrying at our baggage counter on Level I. 5. The scheme is designed to relieve traffic congestion on the main routes into the city. 6. State boundaries are becoming increasingly meaningless in the global economy. 7. Under the new government regulations, all houses must be insured against loss from fire. 8. The country is now faced with the prospect of war. 9. The President faces the difficult task of putting the economy back on its feet. 10. To relieve traffic congestion, investment priority must shift toward dramatic expansion of high-capacity public transportation systems.
Ex. 11. Match the phrases from column A with those from column B. Translate the sentences into Russian.
| A | B |
| 1. Passengers have to transfer from one transportation mode to another. | a) Many technological improvements have b) found their use since 1990s. |
| 2. The building is very costly. | c) Traffic congestion is a serious problem. |
| 3. Traffic jams are acute problems. | d) Travelers have to change transport facilities. |
| 4. Antipollution measures may add to the expense of building. | e) The building is very expensive. |
| 5. A lot of technological advanced have been introduced since 1996. | f) Antipollution measures may increase the costs of building. |
Read and translate the text using a dictionary if necessary.
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Transportation Problems
(1)The world's transportation facilities are various but unevenly developed. Many under industrialized countries cannot afford the transportation services they need. At the same time, some highly industrialized countries are oversupplied. In the United States, for example, there are many miles of underused railroads, inland waterways, and rural roads.
Transportation movements are hampered by economic barriers such as tariffs and import and export quotas. Different railroad gauges often require a costly transfer of freight and passengers from one national railroad to another.
(2) “Cargo preference” laws of some countries, restricting transportation of certain cargoes, may hamper the most economic operation of the world's shipping fleets. Many countries want to have their own fleets of ships or to promote their own airlines. This may also divert traffic from the most efficient carriers.
(3) Many countries regulate their transportation services so that the various modes don’t compete against each other, but cooperate. In the United States, however, government regulations vary widely from mode to mode and between those transportation movements that cross state boundaries and those that do not. A major step toward developing a unified national transportation policy was taken in 1966 with the creation of the Department of Transportation.
(4) Laws, customs, and labor agreements often require the employment of more persons than are needed for efficient transportation service, especially as technological advances such as container ships are introduced. But layoffs of unneeded workers may result in large-scale unemployment and create severe social problems. Similarly, the building of modern terminal facilities in certain ports and cities may so concentrate traffic that other, bypassed ports and cities face economic depression.
There are costly and inconvenient delays when people and goods are transferred from one transportation mode to another. These delays include time spent by a traveler at a bus stop, at an airport baggage counter, etc. They include the time spent by cargo ships while in port being loaded or unloaded.
(5)The building of expressways and tollways, with their wide rights-of-way and complex intersections, is very costly and has forced the relocation of hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses, particularly in cities. Entire neighborhoods have been destroyed. Many of the people displaced are from low-income areas in the inner cities and are those not able to find new homes.
Traffic congestion in the United States has been relieved as cities have decentralized and population and business densities have decreased. But rush-hour traffic jams and lack of parking space, especially in downtown areas, are still serious problems. Greater use of mass transit services is a likely solution. Mass transit should be heavily subsidized to meet its costs. A fare structure should be low enough to provide service that would induce* people to leave their cars at home. The decrease of public transportation services has hit hardest** at the poor, the elderly, the young, and the disabled*** who often have no private automobiles.
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(6)Transportation facilities and operation also affect the quality of the environment. In an effort to reduce air pollution, laws in the United States set limits on automobile emissions. Such antipollution measures, however, may increase costs of building and operating motor vehicles. Similarly, design changes required by laws limiting the noise levels and air pollution of aircraft may decrease the operating efficiency of the aircraft. The development of supersonic aircraft has been opposed because of the loud sonic boom**** they create while in flight. Fear of pollution from massive oil leaks has affected plans for new pipelines and the building and operation of supertankers. Natural scenery may be deformed and historical landmarks destroyed by construction for highways, railroads, and airports.
Transportation facilities also present a safety danger. The private automobile, in particular, is one of the most dangerous modes of transportation, though accident rates are slowly being reduced. Major accidents on other transportation modes are relatively rare. But when they occur, as in the crash of an airliner or in the collision of passenger trains, the loss of life may be great.
Notes: *to induce – заставлять;
**to hit hard — сильно ударять;
**the disabled – инвалиды;
****loud sonic boom – звуковой удар, создаваемый в результате преодоления
самолетом звукового барьера.
Ex. 12. Go back to the text and using the paragraph reference find the words which are similar to:
· means of transport, to pay for, railway, expensive, move (paragraph 1);
· to limit, ship, freight, profitable (paragraph 2);
· to control, to work together, to differ, border, establishment (paragraph 3);
· people, to require, construction, to congest, passenger, luggage (paragraph 4);
· toll road, broad, crossroads, firm, whole, old cities, peak-hour traffic, city centre,
to finance, motor car (paragraph 5);
· to influence, attempt, airplane, especially, although, to decrease, to take place
(paragraph 6).
Ex. 13. Search the text for the English equivalents of the following Russian phrases:
внутренние водные пути; определенные виды грузов; значительный шаг к (развитию); единая транспортная политика; Министерство транспорта; технические достижения; контейнеровозы; широкомасштабная безработица; во время погрузки и выгрузки в порту; целые районы; недостаток мест для парковки; общественный транспорт; возможное решение; покрывать затраты; пытаясь …; стоимость строительства и эксплуатации автомобилей; естественные ландшафты; исторические достопримечательности; представлять угрозу безопасности; серьезные аварии; столкновение поездов.
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