经济学人:优步经济学:艰难的交易(2)

 　　But against these benefits, there are costs to weigh. 但在这些利益背后，还有代价需要权衡。

　　Far from reducing congestion¹ by encouraging people to give up their cars, as many had hoped, ride-hailing seems to increase it. 优步没有向很多人希望的那样，通过鼓励人们不要自己开车来缓解交通，约车服务似乎使交通拥堵变得更加严重。

　　Bruce Schaller, a transport consultant², estimates that over half of all Uber and Lyft trips in big American cities 交通顾问布鲁斯·夏勒估计在美国大城市中，超过半数的优步和来福车出行

　　would otherwise have been made on foot or by bike, bus, subway or train. 都本可以通过步行、自行车、公交车、地铁或火车进行。

　　He reckons that ride-hailing services add 2.8 vehicle miles of driving in those cities for every mile they subtract. 他认为，在这些城市中，它们的行程每缩减一公里，约车就要多跑2.8公里。

　　A new working paper by John Barrios of the University of Chicago and Yael Hochberg and Hanyi Yi of Rice University 芝加哥大学的John Barrios以及莱斯大学的Yael Hochberg和Hanyi Yi的一篇新工作论文

　　spells out one deadly consequence of this increase in traffic. Using data from the federal transport department, 明确说明了交通增长所导致的致命后果。根据联邦交通部的数据

　　they find that the introduction of ride-sharing to a city is associated with an increase in vehicle-miles travelled, petrol consumption and car registrations— 他们发现向一座城市引入拼车和汽车行驶里程、汽油消耗量以及车辆注册的增加有关联—

　　and a 3.5% jump in fatal car accidents. At a national level, this translates into 987 extra deaths a year. 并且致命交通事故增加了3.5%。从全国范围来看，这个比例相当于每年车祸死亡增加987例。

　　What could be done to tip the balance back to benefits overall? "Congestion pricing is the most direct solution," says Jonathan Hall of the University of Toronto. 怎样才能扭转平衡让整体受益呢？“高峰期行车收费是最直接的解决方案，”多伦多大学的Jonathan Hall说道。

　　Several cities, including London, Stockholm and Singapore, have moved in this direction, charging drivers for entering busy areas at peak hours. 包括伦敦、斯德哥尔摩和新加坡在内的几个城市已经开始朝这个方向行动，向那些在高峰期驶入繁忙地区的司机收费。

　　If ride-hailing firms tweaked their pricing to encourage carpooling, that would help, too. 如果约车公司调整价格鼓励拼车，也是有帮助的。

　　One of the worst things a city can do, says Mr Barrios, is to cap the number of ride-hailing cars on their streets, as New York did in August. 一个城市可以做的最糟糕的事情之一，Barrios表示，就是限制路上约车的数量，就像8月份纽约所做的那样。

　　That marked a step back towards the days when barriers to entering the taxi market were high and competition was low. 这是退步回到了那些出租车市场进入要求高，竞争力低的日子。

　　A dismal³ outcome, as most right-thinking economists⁴ would agree. 多数头脑正常的经济学家都会认为这是一个惨淡的结果。

1 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。

2 consultant   

n.顾问；会诊医师，专科医生

参考例句：

• He is a consultant on law affairs to the mayor.他是市长的一个法律顾问。
• Originally,Gar had agreed to come up as a consultant.原来，加尔只答应来充当我们的顾问。

3 dismal   

adj.阴沉的，凄凉的，令人忧郁的，差劲的

参考例句：

• That is a rather dismal melody.那是一支相当忧郁的歌曲。
• My prospects of returning to a suitable job are dismal.我重新找到一个合适的工作岗位的希望很渺茫。

4 economists   

n.经济学家，经济专家( economist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
• Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》