VOA标准英语2012--Indonesia's Train Surfers Highlight Traffic Woes

Indonesia's Train Surfers Highlight Traffic Woes¹

During the morning and afternoon rush hours many young men can be seen on riding on top of Jakarta's commuter² trains. Some do it to avoid the overcrowded conditions and stifling³ heat inside. Others do it to avoid paying the fare of about 25 cents.
Areas Chandra, 23, says it is actually safer on the top of the train than hanging out of the open doorways⁴. He says it is more convenient riding on the roof than next to a door where they might fall. Chandra adds that a lot of people inside the trains do fall but if they are on the roof, they can take precautions.
To stop what are called "train surfers", authorities have installed barbed wire barriers and sprayed offenders⁵ with paint. Now, they are suspending concrete balls above the tracks outside some train stations to deter⁶ the practice.
Commuter Chairul Badri says the efforts have been ineffective because an increasing number of passengers has overwhelmed the transit⁷ system's capacity.
“Until now, our government has tried to do the best thing," notes Badri, "but because [it] is more crowded and every day more and more, that it is difficult for the government to handle them.”
More than 27 million people live in Jakarta and its sprawling⁸ suburban⁹ communities. The city's roadway system is also overwhelmed and the gridlock is getting worse. Last year, Indonesia's thriving economy led to a record number of new car and motorbike sales, although new road construction has been lagging.
Suryono Herlambang, an Urban planner at Tarumanagara University says while the government talks about building new multi-billion-dollar transit systems, it lacks the political will to take the relatively¹⁰ easy step of increasing train service between Jakarta and the suburbs.
Herlambang says they all know that Jakarta already has the train network between Jakarta, Bekasi, Bogor, and Tangerang but improving it is not a priority for the government.
He says the long-term solution lies in increasing and improving train service in the region. But the train surfers say as long as the trains are overcrowded, they will find a way to ride on top.

1 woes   

困境( woe的名词复数 )； 悲伤； 我好苦哇； 某人就要倒霉

参考例句：

• Thanks for listening to my woes. 谢谢您听我诉说不幸的遭遇。
• She has cried the blues about its financial woes. 对于经济的困难她叫苦不迭。

2 commuter   

n.(尤指市郊之间)乘公交车辆上下班者

参考例句：

• Police cordoned off the road and diverted commuter traffic. 警察封锁了道路并分流交通。
• She accidentally stepped on his foot on a crowded commuter train. 她在拥挤的通勤列车上不小心踩到了他的脚。

3 stifling   

a.令人窒息的

参考例句：

• The weather is stifling. It looks like rain. 今天太闷热，光景是要下雨。
• We were stifling in that hot room with all the windows closed. 我们在那间关着窗户的热屋子里，简直透不过气来。

4 doorways   

n.门口，门道( doorway的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The houses belched people; the doorways spewed out children. 从各家茅屋里涌出一堆一堆的人群，从门口蹦出一群一群小孩。 来自辞典例句
• He rambled under the walls and doorways. 他就顺着墙根和门楼遛跶。 来自辞典例句

5 offenders   

n.冒犯者( offender的名词复数 )；犯规者；罪犯；妨害…的人（或事物）

参考例句：

• Long prison sentences can be a very effective deterrent for offenders. 判处长期徒刑可对违法者起到强有力的威慑作用。
• Purposeful work is an important part of the regime for young offenders. 使从事有意义的劳动是管理少年犯的重要方法。

6 deter   

vt.阻止，使不敢，吓住

参考例句：

• Failure did not deter us from trying it again.失败并没有能阻挡我们再次进行试验。
• Dogs can deter unwelcome intruders.狗能够阻拦不受欢迎的闯入者。

7 transit   

n.经过，运输；vt.穿越，旋转；vi.越过

参考例句：

• His luggage was lost in transit.他的行李在运送中丢失。
• The canal can transit a total of 50 ships daily.这条运河每天能通过50条船。

8 sprawling   

adj.蔓生的，不规则地伸展的v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的现在分词 )；蔓延；杂乱无序地拓展；四肢伸展坐着（或躺着）

参考例句：

• He was sprawling in an armchair in front of the TV. 他伸开手脚坐在电视机前的一张扶手椅上。
• a modern sprawling town 一座杂乱无序拓展的现代城镇

9 suburban   

adj.城郊的，在郊区的

参考例句：

• Suburban shopping centers were springing up all over America. 效区的商业中心在美国如雨后春笋般地兴起。
• There's a lot of good things about suburban living.郊区生活是有许多优点。

10 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。