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Transport Solutions Worksheet
You are going to talk about transport and the environment.
Before you begin, here is some vocabulary that you may want to use.
Match the vocabulary in 16 with the explanations af.
1public consultation
2traffic calming
3heritage
4noise pollution
5rat-run
6dual carriageway
aUnpleasant noise that disturbs people.
bA route taken by drivers through back streets to avoid a busy
main road.
cMeasures such as speed humps and mini roundabouts designed to
make people drive more slowly.
dTraditional culture which is believed to be important and
should be preserved.
eA road with two lanes in each direction.
fWhen ordinary people are asked for their opinion about an issue
or proposal that may affect them.
Now read about this situation.
In small groups, discuss the advantages and disadvantages of
each proposal, and try to agree on which of the three solutions
would be best for the town.
The town of Albourn has a serious traffic problem. Many people
travel to work in Thurham, the large city nearby, but traffic
congestion is so bad that it often takes people more than an hour
to make the five-kilometre journey. Drivers therefore increasingly
do a rat-run through the quiet residential areas of the town, which
is dangerous, especially for children travelling to school. It is
clear that something needs to be done.
Three solutions to Albourns traffic problem have been suggested.
Firstly, an old disused railway line that used to connect Thurham
with nearby towns such as Albourn could be renovated and
re-opened. The railway runs alongside the main road, but it is
completely overgrown as it has not been used for twenty years.
Secondly, the main road could be widened into a dual carriageway.
This would mean digging up the old railway line to make way for the
road. The third proposal is to encourage more people to cycle to
work by installing a network of cycle lanes linking Albourn to
Thurham. This would involve making many of the back streets of
Albourn one-way streets or banning motor vehicles from them
altogether, and installing other traffic calming measures around
the town. It would also involve charging people 3 every time they
use the main road to Thurham during rush hour.
A public consultation meeting has been called, in which various
people will speak and the local community will be able to form an
opinion about which is the best transport solution.
