A Reason to Cross the Street|脚踏斑马，行更安全

A zebra crossing is not only seen at the zoo.

斑马的条纹可不只动物园才有。

Anyone who has tried to cross the street in the middle of Taipei knows that it can be a frightening experience. It sometimes seems as if drivers believe pedestrians don't _(1)_ or as if they treat the whole city as one big racetrack. So how is a person supposed to get to the _(2)_ side of the street? One of the most common _(3)_ for cities around the world is the crosswalk. A crosswalk is a designated section of the street where pedestrians can safely cross at certain _(4)_ of time. Or at least that's the theory behind crosswalks. As you already know, if you've walked in Taipei, just because there's a crosswalk doesn't mean that cars will _(5)_ for you.

Crosswalks are also known as zebra crossings because they are often _(6)_ by white stripes on the black surfaces of the road. Nowadays, though, many towns and cities are _(7)_ with cutting-edge zebra crossings to make them safer. In Auckland, New Zealand, having 38 serious crashes in crosswalks over a five-year period was deemed _(8)_ by the city council. They decided that a remedy would be a 12-month trial of adding motion-activated flashing light studs onto the roads near zebra crossings. This would encourage drivers to take more notice of walkers, especially when _(9)_ is poor because of rain or fog.

In today's busy, _(10)_ cities, crosswalks can be a pedestrian's best friend, and technology can make zebra crossings even safer. But remember, the best way to avoid accidents is to follow the advice your parents gave you when you were younger—always look both ways before crossing the street.

(A) indicated   (B) strategies  (C) visibility  (D) exist   (E) slow down

(F) opposite    (G) unacceptable    (H) intervals   (I) bustling    (J) experimenting

任何一个想在台北市中心过马路的人都知道那可是个恐怖的经验。有时候你会觉得驾驶好像认为马路上没有行人的存在，或是他们把这座城市当成大型赛车场似的。那么行人应该如何到街道的另一边呢？在世界各地的城市中，走行人穿越道是最常见的对策之一。行人穿越道是街道上某个指定的区域，让行人可以在某些固定时间内安全地过马路。至少，这是设计行人穿越道的目的。正如你所知，要是你走在台北街头，虽然有行人穿越道，但那并不表示车辆会为你减速慢行。

　　行人穿越道又叫做斑马线，这是因为它们通常是在黑色马路上漆上白色条纹以作为标识之故。但今日有许多城镇正在试验尖端科技的斑马线，以提高它们的安全性。纽西兰的奥克兰市 5 年来，在行人穿越道上发生了 38 起汽车撞倒行人的重大事故，这让市议会十分无法接受。他们决议的补救之道是在斑马线旁的路面上加装感应式的闪光灯饰。这项试验为期一年，应该能促使驾驶人更加注意行人，尤其是雨天或起雾而造成视线不良的时候。

　　在今日繁忙熙攘的城市里，行人穿越道是行人最好的朋友，而科技更能提高斑马线的安全性。但是要切记，避免意外发生的最佳方式，就是听从父母从小教导我们的──过马路前一定要先看左右两边的来车。

标准答案:   1. (D)  2. (F)  3. (B)  4. (H)  5. (E)
   6. (A)  7. (J)  8. (G)  9. (C)  10. (I)

For Your Information

斑马线之所以采用白色，是因为白色的亮度够，在灰黑色的柏油路面相当明显，不过在夜间仍有辨识度偏低的现象，因此比利时发明家 Tony Cavaleri 灵机一动，推出一种会发光的斑马线，让行人获得最佳的安全保障。

Tony Cavaleri 在日前推出一种名为 Cava Pass 的夜间发光式斑马线，当传感器感应到有行人踏到斑马线时，原本白色部分便发出亮光，让驾驶人于夜间可清楚见到行人穿越，减少不必要的意外事故。