为避奥运拥堵 英公司设立“太空舱

 

英公司为避奥运拥堵 让员工留宿“太空舱”

Company installs space pods to help staff avoid commute¹ during Olympics

　　With roads and tube lines set to be more congested than ever this summer a few people may be tempted² to use it an excuse for a day off.

　　But for employees at data services provider Interxion a chaotic³ commute during the Olympics will hold no weight.

　　That's because, in a bid to keep things ticking over this summer, bosses at the London company are asking staff to sleep at work - in space pods.

　　Far from sleeping on the job engineers at the Brick Lane based firm in east London will be asked to stay behind and sleep in the claustrophobic capsules to avoid the rush hour.

　　And while other companies are set to offer staff the luxury of working from home during the Games the firm behind the capsules hope to get more workplaces on board.

　　Podtime, the firm behind the unusual cabins, are billing them as the perfect solution to the Olympics' congested commute.

　　On their official website they state 'London businesses will be severely⁴ affected⁵ by the transport problems caused by the Olympics.

　　'Cost effective and versatile⁶ pods provide the best solution to this by allowing your staff to stay on site as necessary, in comfort and privacy.'

　　Coming in a range of colours, the capsules made of polycarbonate, sell at anything from ?1,375.

　　The stock models are fitted with either foam⁷ mattresses⁹ or a standard single mattress⁸ as well as a storage shelf, mirror and power points.

　　These types of capsules have been around for years, in hotels, but Interxion is thought to be among the first to have them stalled at the workplace.

　　An independent report carried out by Oxford¹⁰ Economics last year estimated that around 450,000 visitors will stay in the capital while 5.5 million people will visit for at least a day during the Games.

　　This will inevitably¹¹ mean more cars on the road and greater congestion¹² on the Underground.

　　今年夏天，英国的马路和地铁将出现前所未有的拥挤，有些人可能会很想以交通堵塞为由请假。

　　然而对数据服务供应商Interxion的雇员来说，奥运期间混乱的交通不足为惧。

　　这是因为这家伦敦公司的老板们今夏为了保持公司正常运转，让员工睡在办公室的“太空舱”里。

　　这家公司的工程师完全不是在工作时打盹，而是为了躲避交通高峰期，被留宿在幽闭的“太空舱”里。这家公司的总部位于伦敦东部的砖块街。

　　其他公司打算奥运会期间让员工享受在家工作的待遇，而这家设置“太空舱”的公司希望能增加更多工作人员用舱。

　　发明这种奇特的太空舱的Podtime公司宣称这是应对奥运会交通拥堵的最佳方案。

　　该公司在官方网站上说道：“伦敦商业将会因奥运会导致的交通问题而受到严重影响。

　　“太空舱成本低又集多功能于一身，通过让员工在必要的时候就地留宿，又舒适又清静，为奥运交通问题提供了最佳解决方法。”

　　这种小舱用聚碳酸酯制成，有多种颜色，起价为1375英镑。

　　这种小舱的模型内装有储物架、镜子和电源插座，还有泡沫床垫或标准单人床垫。

　　多年前旅馆里就已经有这种小舱，但据认为Interxion是第一个将这种小舱安置在工作场所的公司。

　　《牛津经济学》去年发布的一份独立报告估计，奥运会期间约有45万游客将在首都伦敦停留，550万人至少会在伦敦停留一天。

　　这意味着马路上不可避免地会有更多车，地铁里也必然会更加拥挤。

1 commute   

vi.乘车上下班；vt.减(刑)；折合；n.上下班交通

参考例句：

• I spend much less time on my commute to work now.我现在工作的往返时间要节省好多。
• Most office workers commute from the suburbs.很多公司的职员都是从郊外来上班的。

2 tempted   

v.怂恿（某人）干不正当的事；冒…的险（tempt的过去分词）

参考例句：

• I was sorely tempted to complain, but I didn't. 我极想发牢骚，但还是没开口。
• I was tempted by the dessert menu. 甜食菜单馋得我垂涎欲滴。

3 chaotic   

adj.混沌的，一片混乱的，一团糟的

参考例句：

• Things have been getting chaotic in the office recently.最近办公室的情况越来越乱了。
• The traffic in the city was chaotic.这城市的交通糟透了。

4 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

5 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

6 versatile   

adj.通用的，万用的；多才多艺的，多方面的

参考例句：

• A versatile person is often good at a number of different things.多才多艺的人通常擅长许多种不同的事情。
• He had been one of the game's most versatile athletes.他是这项运动中技术最全面的运动员之一。

7 foam   

v./n.泡沫，起泡沫

参考例句：

• The glass of beer was mostly foam.这杯啤酒大部分是泡沫。
• The surface of the water is full of foam.水面都是泡沫。

8 mattress   

n.床垫，床褥

参考例句：

• The straw mattress needs to be aired.草垫子该晾一晾了。
• The new mattress I bought sags in the middle.我买的新床垫中间陷了下去。

9 mattresses   

褥垫，床垫( mattress的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The straw mattresses are airing there. 草垫子正在那里晾着。
• The researchers tested more than 20 mattresses of various materials. 研究人员试验了二十多个不同材料的床垫。

10 Oxford   

n.牛津（英国城市）

参考例句：

• At present he has become a Professor of Chemistry at Oxford.他现在已是牛津大学的化学教授了。
• This is where the road to Oxford joins the road to London.这是去牛津的路与去伦敦的路的汇合处。

11 inevitably   

adv.不可避免地；必然发生地

参考例句：

• In the way you go on,you are inevitably coming apart.照你们这样下去，毫无疑问是会散伙的。
• Technological changes will inevitably lead to unemployment.技术变革必然会导致失业。

12 congestion   

n.阻塞，消化不良

参考例句：

• The congestion in the city gets even worse during the summer.夏天城市交通阻塞尤为严重。
• Parking near the school causes severe traffic congestion.在学校附近泊车会引起严重的交通堵塞。