TheFutureofTransportation英翻中 - 社會議題

The Future of Transportation A. LookMom, No Hand!In May 2012, Nevadabecame the first place in the world to issue a license for a driverless car. Thelicense was for a Toyota vehicle that employs technology developed by Google toallow drivers (if you can call them that!) to travel without having to operateany of the car’s controls themselves. While Google cofounder Sergey Brinpredicts that driverless cars will be on roads everywhere within five years, mostexperts think it might be a bit longer. B. TheHorizontal ElevatorAlso known as pod cars,Personal Rapid Transit will revolutionize public transportation, according toproponents. It’s basically a cross between the subway and a taxi, with small, automatedvehicles moving around on tracks. One advantage of the system is that you won’thave to wait on the platform for minutes, as a car will arrive within second ofyou pressing a button to call it. Another attractive aspect is the fact thatyou won’t have to share your carriage with a heaving mob as each vehicle willcarry just a few people. But the biggest plus is that by entering yourdestination, you’ll be able to travel direct from point to point, withoutstopping at all the stations in between. Several pilot schemes are alreadyoperating around the world, and more will be launched soon. C. HereComes the SunModern, high-techvehicles are undoubtedly going to play a major role in the development oftransportation, but what about the roads and highways themselves? Onefascinating concept in the solar road. Solar panels would replace concrete andasphalt and the energy collected would pay for the road itself over time. Otherpossibilities could include adding LED lights to provide the road marking, andheating for frosty climates. Although, solar roads won’t be widespread anytimesoon, at least one company is already working on plans for a solar parking lot.