VOA标准英语2012--Development Banks to Fund Sustainable Transport

 

Development Banks to Fund Sustainable Transport

The world’s eight largest development banks say they’ll invest 175 billion dollars to finance sustainable urban transportation systems. The announcement came at the U.N. Conference on Sustainable Development, also known as Rio plus 20.

The banks will invest the funds over the next 10 years, saying better transportation will spur development and protect the environment and public health.

“I think this is a real breakthrough for sustainable transport and sustainable development. It heralds¹ a move away from massive road building, which we’ve seen in past decades from the development banks, and a move towards more investment in urban public transportation, safer roads for walking and bicycling and more efficient freight systems that can help build a green economy,” said Michael Replogle, founder² of the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy, who was in Rio de Janeiro for the announcement. He said such transportation systems are vital as populations shift toward urban areas.

“We have half the world’s population now living in cities and another billion people will move to the world’s cities over the next 20 years. So the pattern that’s determined³ by transportation of how those cities are built will really make a huge difference in how sustainable our world is 20 years from now,” he said.

Much of the urban population growth is occurring in Africa and Asia.

Replogle said the lack of sustainable transport systems today comes at a cost.

“We see 1.3 million people a year die from traffic fatalities⁴ – approximately an equal number die from air pollution. Half of air pollution deaths are caused by transportation related pollution,” he said.

While the development banks are focusing on urban transportation systems, existing road networks, said Replogle, must be maintained.

“Keeping roads in a state of good repair is indeed a part of sustainable transportation – taking streets that don’t accommodate all users - like people who walk or cycle or take public transport - to accommodate those users safely. Those are important priorities for road investment,” he said.

He said this is also important for a country like the United States, where most of the road investment in recent decades has occurred in suburban⁵ areas. He said those roads need to be retrofitted and modernized⁶ for the 21st century. Fifty years ago, he said, the U.S. invested about 5 percent of its gross domestic product in transportation. That figure has fallen to just over one percent.

Replogle described the core features of new urban sustainable transportation systems as being safe, clean and affordable⁷ with access for all. The systems not only would be designed for better transportation of people, but freight as well.

“So that shippers and haulers can get their goods to market in the most affordable and least environmentally damaging way,” he said.

This would include using trucks for short distances and barge⁸ and rail for longer distances.

1 heralds   

n.使者( herald的名词复数 )；预报者；预兆；传令官v.预示( herald的第三人称单数 )；宣布（好或重要）

参考例句：

• The song of birds heralds the approach of spring. 百鸟齐鸣报春到。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• The wind sweeping through the tower heralds a rising storm in the mountain. 山雨欲来风满楼。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

2 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

3 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

4 fatalities   

n.恶性事故( fatality的名词复数 )；死亡；致命性；命运

参考例句：

• Several people were injured, but there were no fatalities. 有几个人受伤，但没有人死亡。
• The accident resulted in fatalities. 那宗意外道致多人死亡。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 suburban   

adj.城郊的，在郊区的

参考例句：

• Suburban shopping centers were springing up all over America. 效区的商业中心在美国如雨后春笋般地兴起。
• There's a lot of good things about suburban living.郊区生活是有许多优点。

6 modernized   

使现代化，使适应现代需要( modernize的过去式和过去分词 )； 现代化，使用现代方法

参考例句：

• By 1985 the entire railway network will have been modernized. 等到1985年整个铁路网就实现现代化了。
• He set about rebuilding France, and made it into a brilliant-looking modernized imperialism. 他试图重建法国，使它成为一项表面华丽的现代化帝业。

7 affordable   

adj.支付得起的，不太昂贵的

参考例句：

• The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
• There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。

8 barge   

n.平底载货船，驳船

参考例句：

• The barge was loaded up with coal.那艘驳船装上了煤。
• Carrying goods by train costs nearly three times more than carrying them by barge.通过铁路运货的成本比驳船运货成本高出近3倍。