新西兰英语 720 Gisborne Rail

 　　KiwiRail announced this week that it will close the railway from Gisborne to Napier. Heavy rain in March last year washed out 3km of railway line. The line has not been repaired partly because it was difficult to reach. KiwiRail decided¹ that it would cost $4m to repair the line and $8m to keep it open each year. There is not enough freight² every year to pay for this cost. This line has run at a loss of $2.4m a year for some time.

　　Meanwhile a report by Business and Economic Research Ltd (BERL) said that the KiwiRail figures are wrong. It would not cost so much.

　　The Gisborne mayor³ said the railway line to Napier is very important to the economy of Gisborne. Most of the freight is from forests. Trucks instead of trains now transport logs⁴ to ports for shipping⁵ overseas. Logging⁶ trucks on the roads cause damage to roads. Trains are better for carrying heavy loads. Trucks also make it difficult for other vehicles on the road to Napier, which is steep, winding⁷ and narrow with very few places for cars to pass.

　　The Gisborne mayor also believes that passenger rail could be used by tourists; however, there have been no passenger trains for many years. Gisborne is a beautiful city with a warm climate but it is difficult to travel there because of the geography of the area. It is hilly with many forests. Air travel to smaller cities is quite expensive.

　　Listen to March 6th 2010 to hear more about the future of railways.

　　Vocabulary

　　?washed out – land under the railway lines disappeared down the hill

　　?reach – get there

　　?freight – goods carried on trucks, trains or planes

　　?logs – cut tree trunks

　　?vehicles – e.g. trucks, cars, motorbikes

　　Idioms to learn

　　?washed out

　　?it is difficult to …(verb)

　　?run at a loss

　　?very few – not many

1 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

2 freight   

n.货物，货运；vt.运送（货物）看，装货于

参考例句：

• Tons of freight were flown into this airport every day.每天有许多吨货物被空运到这个机场。
• There is ten yuan in the bill for freight.发票中包括运费十元。

3 mayor   

n.市长

参考例句：

• The new mayor said he would clean the city up.新市长说，他要整顿本市。
• The mayor hurried into his office,brushing off the reporters.市长赶快走进办公室，拒不接见记者。

4 logs   

n.练习用球瓶；原木，木材，木料( log的名词复数 )；航海[飞行]日志

参考例句：

• logs for the fire 烧火用的木材
• The logs were knocked together as they floated down the stream. 圆木顺流而下时互相碰撞着。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 shipping   

n.船运（发货，运输，乘船）

参考例句：

• We struck a bargain with an American shipping firm.我们和一家美国船运公司谈成了一笔生意。
• There's a shipping charge of ￡5 added to the price.价格之外另加五英镑运输费。

6 logging   

n.伐木搬运业；记录，存入；航行日志v.砍伐树木(log的现在分词)

参考例句：

• All these measures were calculated to prevent water-logging by rainstorm or mountain torrents. 这些措施都是为了预防暴雨或山洪造成的涝灾。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They cleared large tracts of forest for farming, logging and ranching. 他们清除了大片的森林以经营农耕、采伐与畜牧。 来自辞典例句

7 winding   

n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈

参考例句：

• A winding lane led down towards the river.一条弯弯曲曲的小路通向河边。
• The winding trail caused us to lose our orientation.迂回曲折的小道使我们迷失了方向。