A There are
now over 700 million motor vehicles in the world - and the number is rising by
more than 40 million each year. The average distance driven by car users is
growing too - from 8 km a day per person in western Europe in 1965 to 25 km a
day in 1995. This dependence on motor vehicles has given rise to major
problems, including environmental pollution, depletion of oil resources,
traffic congestion and safety.
B While
emissions from new cars are far less harmful than they used to be, city streets
and motorways are becoming more crowded than ever, often with older trucks, buses
and taxis, which emit excessive levels of smoke and fumes. This concentration
of vehicles makes air quality in urban areas unpleasant and sometimes dangerous
to breathe. Even Moscow has joined the list of capitals afflicted by congestion
and traffic fumes. In Mexico City, vehicle pollution is a major health hazard.
C Until a
hundred years ago, most journeys were in the 20 km range, the distance
conveniently accessible by horse. Heavy freight could only be carried by water
or rail. The invention of the motor vehicle brought personal mobility to the
masses and made rapid freight delivery possible over a much wider area. Today
about 90 per cent of inland freight in the United Kingdom is carried by road.
Clearly the world cannot revert to the horse-drawn wagon. Can it avoid being
locked into congested and polluting ways of transporting people and goods?
D In
Europe most cities are still designed for the old modes of transport.
Adaptation to the motor car has involved adding ring roads, one-way systems and
parking lots. In the United States, more land is assigned to car use than to
housing. Urban sprawl means that life without a car is next to impossible. Mass
use of motor vehicles has also killed or injured millions of people. Other
social effects have been blamed on the car such as alienation and aggressive
human behavior.
E A 1993
study by the European Federation for Transport and Environment found that car
transport is seven times as costly as rail travel in terms of the external
social costs it entails such as congestion, accidents, pollution, loss of
cropland and natural habitats, depletion of oil resources, and so on. Yet cars
easily surpass trains or buses as a flexible and convenient mode of personal
transport. It is unrealistic to expect people to give up private cars in favor
of mass transit.
F Technical
solutions can reduce the pollution problem and increase the fuel efficiency of
engines. But fuel consumption and exhaust emissions depend on which cars are
preferred by customers and how they are driven. Many people buy larger cars
than they need for daily purposes or waste fuel by driving aggressively.
Besides, global car use is increasing at a faster rate than the improvement in
emissions and fuel efficiency which technology is now making possible.
G One
solution that has been put forward is the long-term solution of designing
cities and neighborhoods so that car journeys are not necessary – all essential
services being located within walking distance or easily accessible by public
transport. Not only would this save energy and cut carbon dioxide emissions, it
would also enhance the quality of community life, putting the emphasis on
people instead of cars. Good local government is already bringing this about in
some places. But few democratic communities are blessed with the vision - and
the capital - to make such profound changes in modern lifestyles.
H A more
likely scenario seems to be a combination of mass transit systems for travel
into and around cities, with small 'low emission' cars for urban use and larger
hybrid or lean burn cars for use elsewhere. Electronically tolled highways
might be used to ensure that drivers pay charges geared to actual road use.
Better integration of transport systems is also highly desirable - and made
more feasible by modern computers. But these are solutions for countries which
can afford them. In most developing countries, old cars and old technologies
continue to predominate.
Questions
14 – 19
Reading
Passage 2 has eight paragraphs (A – H).
Which
paragraphs concentrate on the following information?
Write the
appropriate letters (A – H) in boxes 14 – 19 on your answer
sheet.
NB You need only write ONE
letter for each answer.
14 a
comparison of past and present transportation methods
15 how
driving habits contribute to road problems
16 the
relative merits of cars and public transport
17 the
writer's own prediction of future solutions
18 the
increasing use of motor vehicles
19 the
impact of the car on city development
Questions 20 – 26
Do the following statements agree with the information given
in Reading Passage 2?
In boxes 20 – 26 on your answer sheet write
YES if
the statement agrees with the information
NO if the
statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this in
the passage
20
Vehicle pollution is worse in European cities than anywhere else.
21
Transport by horse would be a useful alternative to motor vehicles.
22
Nowadays freight is not carried by water in the United Kingdom.
23
Most European cities were not designed for motor vehicles.
24
Technology alone cannot solve the problem of vehicle pollution.
25
People's choice of car and attitude to driving is a factor in the pollution
problem.
26
Redesigning cities would be a short-term solution.