黄忠雪

城市交通拥堵问题日益严重，尤其是市中心更是堵得水泄不通。纽约是全球目前交通最拥堵的大都市。在今年4月1日，立法者们一致同意实施拥堵收费。纽约将成为美国第一个实施拥堵收费的城市。问题是如何确保这一措施有效并顺利地实施呢？

[难词扫障]

1.congestion n. 拥塞;塞车

2.implement v. 贯彻;执行

3.legislature floor 立法会议厅

4.at the wheel 指挥;掌舵

5.ride shotgun 保驾护航

6.exempt adj. 免除;获豁免

7.bode ill 预示凶兆

8.on⁃demand car hire 按需租车

9.think⁃tank n. （尤指政府的）智囊团

New Yorks congestion is among the worst in the world. Crossing midtown by car is soul⁃destroying. In 2016 the average speed was 47 miles per hour， not much quicker than quick walk. But relief is in sight. On April 1st， state lawmakers agreed to implement congestionpricing， making New York the first big American city to do so. By 2021 vehicles will have to pay to enter Manhattan south of 60th street.

Similar proposals were put forward many times but were always rejected. The Regional Plan Association proposed road pricing in 1996. Michael Bloombergs 2007 plan was not even debated on the state legislature floor. This time， with Andrew Cuomo， the state governor， at the wheel and Bill de Blasio， New Yorks mayor， riding shotgun， it looks as if this time is different.

Much of the detail， including how much drivers will have to pay， how they will pay and how often they will pay， have yet to be decided. New Yorkers living in the fee zone who make less than $60，000 a year will be exempt. Other drivers， including motorcyclists， the citys civil servants， disabled drivers， the trucking industry， New Jerseys governor and commuters， all want discounts， credits or exemptions， too， which bode ill.

If done right， congestion?pricing could be expanded beyond Manhattan. New York can learn from other cities. Singapore， for instance， which has had pricing for decades， adjusts prices regularly. It can also learn from mistakes. London， which carried out its pricing in 2003， strangely is only starting to charge on⁃demand car hire like Uber. Stockholm exempted too many vehicles， which caused a drop in fee revenue.

Other car⁃clogged cities considering tolls， including Los Angeles， Philadelphia， Portland， San Francisco and Seattle， are watching New York. “We really have to be a good example，” says Nicle Gelinas of the Manhattan Institute， a New York think⁃tank.

[Reading][Check]

In which city does the congestion charge work well？

A.London. B.Los Angeles. C.Stockholm. D.Singapore.

[Language][Study]

Ⅰ.Important vocabulary in the text

1.soul⁃destroying adj. 非常枯燥的;消磨精神的

2.in sight 看得见; 有望实现

3.proposal n. 提议;建议

4.adjust v. 调整;调节

5.regularly adv. 有规律地

6.revenue n. 财政收入;税收收入

7.toll n. （道路、桥梁的）通行费

Ⅱ.Complete the following sentences in correct forms with the vocabulary given above.

1.It can be quite                   to drive in the downtown since your car moves slowly.

2.A                   about congestion charge has been put forward in New York.

3.Singapore has succeeded in carrying out congestion⁃pricing for decades because it                   prices regularly.

4.If the law about implementing congestion⁃pricing has been passed， then the relief is                  .