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1.3 million vehicles are off Beijing streets 北京街頭上百萬車輛「消跡」

Vehicles move slowly amidst a heavy haze in Beijing, China, Aug. 07, 2007. 八月七日在煙霾籠罩的中國北京市中心，車輛在繁忙車陣中緩慢行進。 PHOTO: EPA

About 1.3 million vehicles are now missing from Beijing's streets, a test of the city's ability to clean its dirty air for next year's Olympic Games.

The four-day test plan runs from Aug. 17-20, said Beijing organizers.

Under the plan, cars with even- and odd-numbered plates will be allowed on the roads on alternate days. Emergency vehicles, taxis, buses and other public service vehicles will be exempt. Fines will be levied on violators, though it was unclear how much.

Beijing has 3.05 million vehicles, officials said Thursday, and is expected to have 3.3 million when the Olympics begin on Aug. 8, 2008.

"Citizens of Beijing understand politics and the big picture - they will understand," Du Shaozhong said, deputy director of Beijing's Environmental Bureau. "It's not just for the Olympics, but also for building a better Beijing."

"A clean-air plan for the Olympics will be published this year, and the most important part is the reduction of vehicles," Du added. He said other measures would include halting construction and closing factories.

The plan comes in the wake of criticism about Beijing's air pollution from International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge. He cautioned on Wednesday - the day the Olympic countdown clocks reached the 1-year mark - that some events next year would have to be postponed if the city's smog continued to threaten the performance of elite athletes.

A similar traffic plan nine months ago met with success during a six-day meeting between Chinese and African leaders. Under that plan, about 800,000 vehicles were taken off the streets as bureaucrats and ordinary citizens were asked not to drive.

為迎接明年的奧運，北京市現正展開一項淨化髒污空氣能力測試，約一百三十萬部車輛將在北京街道上「消聲匿跡」。

北京負責籌劃的官員表示，這項測試計畫自即日起至八月二十日止，為期四天。

測試期間，車輛將依車牌單雙號分日上路。緊急救援車輛、計程車、大型客車及其他公共服務車輛則不在此限。違者將處以罰鍰，但實際罰額不明。

官方人員表示，目前北京的汽車數量是三百零五萬輛，預估明年八月八日奧運開幕時，將成長到三百三十萬輛。

北京市環保局副局長杜少中說：「北京市民了解此舉的目的及整體考量─他們將會了解，這不光是為了奧運，也是為了建設更好的北京。」

杜少中還說：「今年將公佈一項專為奧運提出的淨化空氣計畫，而首務就是減少汽車數量。」他表示，其他措施還包括停止各項營建工程及關閉工廠。

國際奧委會主席賈克斯:羅格對北京空污問題提出批評後，這項計畫旋即誕生。羅格於八月八日（北京奧運開幕倒數一週年）警告說，如果北京的煙霧持續威脅優秀運動選手們的表現，明年部分競賽項目勢必延期舉行 。

九個月前，一場為期六天的中、非兩國領袖會議期間，也曾實施類似的交通計畫，成效卓著。計畫實施期間，由於官員和一般民眾都被要求不開車上路，街頭車流量因此減少了約八十萬輛。

（美聯社／翻譯：林倩如）

TODAY'S WORDS 今日單字 1. plate n. 車牌 (che1 pai2) ，盤子 (pan2 zi5) 例: The criminal smeared mud on his license plate. （那名罪犯以泥巴塗抹自己的車牌。) 2. exempt adj. 被免除的 (bei4 mian3 chu2 de5) 例: No one is exempt from the rule of law. （人人都要遵守法規。) 3. halt v.i. /v.t. 停止 (ting2 zhi3) 例:The police called on the suspects to halt and put their hands on their heads. （警方喝令嫌犯不准動，並要他們把雙手高舉到頭上。) 4. performance n. 性能 (xing4 neng2)，成績 (cheng2 ji1) 例: The car's performance is not very good. It can't go fast enough or handle tight turns. （這部車的性能不太好，不是速度不夠快就是無法應付急轉彎。)

SAY WHAT? 說說看 the big picture 長期、整體的情況 The big picture is the long-term, overall situation, often contrasted with certain small details. If a newspaper reports on a case of corruption involving a gravel company, you could say, "There have been many cases of corruption over many years. We need to look at the big picture if we want to solve this problem." If you examine many details in order to look at the big picture, you are connecting the dots. 「the big picture」是指長期、整體的情況，一般來說，與「certain small details（某些小細節）」反義。如果有報紙報導某家砂石公司涉及行賄，就可以說：「多年來行賄事件層出不窮，若要解決這個問題，就必須從長期整體來看」。 若為了一窺全貌而去檢視許多細節，就是「connect the dots（融會貫通／前後連貫）」。

OUT LOUD 對話練習 Mark: A typhoon is coming! I can't wait! Sam: Are you crazy? Typhoons are dangerous! Mark: Yes, but they also bring a lot of rain, and that makes the air cleaner. Sam: I'll give you that, but there's nothing else good about a typhoon. Mark: Well, there's at least one other good thing. They might cancel class. 馬克：有颱風要來了耶！我等不及了！ 山姆：你瘋了嗎？颱風很危險的！ 馬克：是沒錯啦，但它們也會帶來豐沛的降雨，讓空氣更清新。 山姆：我承認你說的有理，但除此之外，颱風沒有任何好處。 馬克：嗯…至少還有一件好事，就是有可能會停課。 will give someone that　承認某人有理 If you agree with what someone has just said, but still have reservations about their overall argument, you can say, "I'll give you that." 如果你同意某人所言，但對對方整體言論仍持保留態度，就可以說：「I'll give you that」。

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