新奇事件簿 开车禁使免提电话

A major road-safety campaign is under way in Britain to get hands-free mobile phones banned. The charity Brake is also calling for motorists to switch off their phones while driving. The group said the fines for calling or texting while behind the wheel should also be increased by up to tenfold, to around $1,600. This is to provide a greater deterrent¹ than the current penalty of $160. Brake's suggestions follow a revelation that more than 575,000 British drivers had points on their driving licence for using their phone. A spokeswoman for Brake said: "We're living in an age when being constantly connected is the norm. More and more of us have smartphones, and find it hard to switch off, even for a minute."

为了禁止使用免提电话，英国举行了规模宏大的道路安全活动。Brake基金呼吁司机开车时关掉手机。该组织称一边开车一边打电话，或是一边发短信的罚款应该在原有基础上增加十倍，金额约为1600美金。这比现在的160美金的罚款更具威慑力量。有超过57万5000的英国司机因为驾车打电话而被罚分。Brake基金发言人称：“我们生活的这个时代，人与人之间的互联互通已经成为了一种常态。拥有智能手机的人数正在增加，人们很难关掉手机，甚至连一分钟都不行。

Britain's Department for Transport said that although road safety was a "top priority", it had "no plans to change the law around the use of hands-free devices". It added that all penalties were being "kept under review to ensure they are appropriate". Brake said: "While there are enormous benefits to this new technology, it's also posing dangerous temptations to drivers to divert their concentration away from the critical task at hand, often putting our most vulnerable road users in danger." It added: "Many people who wouldn't dream of drink-driving are succumbing² to using their phone and other distractions³ while driving, oblivious⁴ that the effect can be similar and the consequences just as horrific."

英国交通部门称尽管道路安全是重中之重，但是目前还没有就使用免提设备而修改法律的计划。还称所有的罚款都是在确保适当的基础之上的。Brake组织称：“这项新技术有许多益处，但是却对司机的注意力构成了威胁，并让司机处于危险当中。该组织还称：“许多没有酒驾过的司机会使用手机或是其他让他们分心的事物，并把可能造成的严重后果抛到九霄云外。

1 deterrent   

n.阻碍物，制止物；adj.威慑的，遏制的

参考例句：

• Large fines act as a deterrent to motorists.高额罚款是对开车的人的制约。
• I put a net over my strawberries as a deterrent to the birds.我在草莓上罩了网，免得鸟歇上去。

2 succumbing   

不再抵抗（诱惑、疾病、攻击等）( succumb的现在分词 )； 屈从； 被压垮； 死

参考例句：

• Mrs. Smith washed and ironed clothes for him, succumbing to him. 史密斯太太被他迷住了，愿意为他洗衣烫衣。
• They would not in the end abandon their vital interests by succumbing to Soviet blandishment. 他们最终决不会受苏联人的甜言蜜语的诱惑，从而抛弃自己的切身利益。

3 distractions   

n.使人分心的事[人]( distraction的名词复数 )；娱乐，消遣；心烦意乱；精神错乱

参考例句：

• I find it hard to work at home because there are too many distractions. 我发觉在家里工作很难，因为使人分心的事太多。
• There are too many distractions here to work properly. 这里叫人分心的事太多，使人无法好好工作。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 oblivious   

adj.易忘的，遗忘的，忘却的，健忘的

参考例句：

• Mother has become quite oblivious after the illness.这次病后，妈妈变得特别健忘。
• He was quite oblivious of the danger.他完全没有察觉到危险。