华尔街中级英语Lesson 82

This is Brighton station. It’s a busy station. Many passengers travel up to London every day from here. I am going to talk to one or two of the passengers now. Let’s talk to you first of all. Please can I ask you travel on the train very often? Not very much, only occasionally¹ from where we live in the country to London. Where do you originally come from? Switzerland French speaking. How do British trains compare with Swiss trains? Well Swiss trains are very clean, on time and always at the same hour, each hour, which is very very convenient, not expensive, but in England are expensive. Are British trains getting better? No, worse. Oh dear.
Here’s a gentleman, Sir, where are you from? Australia. What do you think of our rail service. It seems fair good.  The rains seem reasonably clean and reasonably on time, so it’s alright. How do they compare with Australian trains? A fair bit better, I think. How have you  find the British Rail staff? Fairly friendly most of the time.  Splendid.  Thank you very much.  That’s alright.
Madam, could I have a quick word? Where are you from? I live in England.  Actually, I’ve lived here for 11 years, but I’m from Holland originally, so by comparison², I think British Rails is just appalling³. What’s wrong with British Rails? It doesn’t run on time, it breaks down half the time, you just can’t rely on it. Trains are dirty. Have you experienced⁴ other railways around the world? France, Holland, I think that’s about it. I have traveled in Portugal a bit, but not very much.  And British Rail doesn’t compare favorably to any of those.
And turning to you, do you think British Railways is doing quite a good job?  I think so, yes. I don’t come from this country, so, I’m just here for a week. Where are you from? Norway.  And how does British Railways compare with Norwegian Railways? I think it’s pretty much the same. Do you think there’s anything we can do to improve the railway service? I think they are quite dirty at times.
Sir, can I ask you how often do you travel on British Railways? Well, during the week I use it every day to go to work but not around here. I travel from Leson to the center of London during the week. So you are a commuter⁵? I suppose so, yes, a short distance commuter, yes. How long does that journey take? About twenty minutes, generally, yes.

1 occasionally   

adv.偶然地；非经常地

参考例句：

• He went on talking,occasionally wiping at his face with a towel.他继续说着，偶尔用毛巾擦一下脸。
• I like playing football best,but occasionally I play table tennis,too.我最喜欢踢足球，偶尔也打打乒乓球。

2 comparison   

n.比较，对照；比拟，比喻

参考例句：

• They make a comparison of New York to a beehive.他们把纽约比作一个蜂巢。
• This dress is really cheaper by comparison.比较起来，这件衣服确实便宜。

3 appalling   

adj.骇人听闻的，令人震惊的，可怕的

参考例句：

• The search was hampered by appalling weather conditions.恶劣的天气妨碍了搜寻工作。
• Nothing can extenuate such appalling behaviour.这种骇人听闻的行径罪无可恕。

4 experienced   

adj.有经验的；经验丰富的，熟练的

参考例句：

• Experienced seamen will advise you about sailing in this weather.有经验的海员会告诉你在这种天气下的航行情况。
• Perhaps you and I had better change over;you are more experienced.也许我们的工作还是对换一下好，你比我更有经验。

5 commuter   

n.(尤指市郊之间)乘公交车辆上下班者

参考例句：

• Police cordoned off the road and diverted commuter traffic. 警察封锁了道路并分流交通。
• She accidentally stepped on his foot on a crowded commuter train. 她在拥挤的通勤列车上不小心踩到了他的脚。