"We don't have rush hours any more, "said Charles M. McLean, who runs the nation's busiest road. "We have rush periods, and they keep getting longer and longer."
McLean was describing Chicago's 235 miles of expressway. But the same might be said about almost any of the expressways that have become an important part of American city life--and about the heavy traffic that often blocks them.
In Chicago, a computerized system has been developed that controls traffic on the city's seven expressways. Now one man--a controller--can follow the movement of Chicago's traffic by looking at a set of lights.
The system uses electronic sensors that are built into each expressway, half a mile apart. Several times a second, the computer receives information from each sensor and translates it into GREen, yellow, or red lights on a map in the control room.
A GREen light means traffic is moving forty-five miles an hour, yellow means thirty to forty-five miles an hour, and red means heavy traffic--cars standing still or moving less than thirty miles an hour.
"See that red light near Austin Avenue?" the controller asked a visitor. "That's a repair truck fixing the road, and the traffic has to go around it."
At the Roosevelt Road entrance to the expressway, the light kept changing from GREen to red and back to green again. "A lot of trucks get on the expressway there," the controller explained. "They can't speed up as fast as cars."
The sensors show immediately where an accident or a stopped car is blocking traffic, and a truck is sent by radio to clear the road. The system has lowered the number of accidents by 18 percent. There are now 1.4 deaths on Chicago's expressways for each one hundred million miles traveled,while in other parts of the country there are 2.6.
Traffic experts say that the Chicago system is the"coming thing".Systems like Chicago's are already in use on some expressways in Los Angeles and Houston."Chicago has taken the lead,"says New York City's traffic director;and he adds,"We are far behind..."
Words:350
Total Reading Time:____________
Words per minute:____________
Notes: expressway 高速公路, system 系统, avenue 大道
I. True or False:
1. A man and a computer follow Chicago's traffic.
2. Chicago has seven expressways.
3. New York City's traffic system is far behind that of Chicago.
II. Answer the Questions:
4. How does the controller follow Chicago's traffic?
_________________________________________________________
5. What color show that the traffic moves the fastest?
_________________________________________________________
III. Multiple Choice:
6. What should be the best title for this text?
A. Computerized Traffic Control System
B. Rush Periods Getting Longer
C. The Nation's Busiest Road
D. Sensors on Expressways
7. The underlined word "it" in the passage refers to _________.
A. a truck which needs repairing
B. a truck doing repairs on the road
C. Austin Avenue D. a red light
8. The system in Chicago _________.
A. is really effective
B. is actually of very little use
C. will be sent to Los Angeles
D. is looked down upon by New York's traffic director
% Comprehension:_________
参考答案：
1．F。只是一台计算机。
2．T。
3．T。
4．By looking at a set of lights on the map in the control room．
5．GREen．
6．A。其余三项都是次要的内容。
7．B。从上下文联系中可推出。
8．A。倒数第二段可以为证。
