Question

【題目】Foreign drivers will have a pay on-the-spot fines of up to ￡900 for breaking the traffic law to be carried out next month.

If they do not have enough cash or a working credit card, their vehicles will clamped(扣留) until they pay—and they will face an additional fee of ￡80 for getting back their vehicles.

The law will also apply to British citizens. The fines will be described officially as “deposits” when the traffic law takes effect, because the money would be returned if the driver went to court and was found not guilty. In practice, very few foreign drivers are likely to return to Britain to deal with their cases.

Foreign drivers are rarely charged because police cannot take action against them if they fail to appear in court. Instead, officers often merely give warnings.

Three million foreign-registered vehicles enter Britain each year. Polish vehicles make up 36 percent, French vehicles 10 percent and German vehicles 9 percent.

Foreign vehicles are 30 percent more likely to be in a crash than British-registered vehicles. The number of crashes caused by foreign vehicles rose by 47 percent between 2003 and 2008. There were almost 400 deaths and serious injuries and 3,000 slight injuries from accidents caused by foreign vehicles in 2008.

The new law is partly intended to settle the problem of foreign lorry drivers ignoring limits on weight and hours at the wheel. Foreign lorries are three times more likely to be in a crash than British lorries. Recent spot checks found that three quarters of lorries that failed safety tests were registered overseas.

The standard deposit for a careless driving offence —such as driving too close to the vehicle in front or reading a map at the wheel—will be ￡300. Deposits for speeding offences and using mobile phones will be ￡60. Foreign drivers will not get points as punishment added to their licenses, while British drivers will.

【1】The first paragraph serves as a(n) ________.

A. explanation B. introduction

C. comment D. background

【2】The foreign drivers who break the traffic law and do not pay on the spot are likely to be fined up to ________.

A. ￡60 B. ￡300

C. ￡900 D. ￡980

【3】We can learn from the passage that ________.

A. many foreign drivers have been fined by Britain police

B. 300,000 German vehicles enter Britain every year

C. 25 percent of foreign vehicles entering Britain have failed safety tests

D. British drivers will be punished with points and fines for breaking the traffic law

【4】The new traffic law is mainly intended to ________.

A. limit the number of foreign vehicles entering Britain

B. increase the Britain government’s additional income

C. reduce the rate of traffic accidents and injuries

D. get foreign drivers to appear in court

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】B

【2】D

【3】D

【4】C

【解析】本篇文章為說明文，介紹了從下個月起，英國將實行一種新的交通法規(guī)：當(dāng)外國司機(jī)在英國違反了交通法，將被處以900英鎊的罰款。如果被罰款的外國司機(jī)向法院申訴獲勝，這筆罰款將被退還。

【1】主旨大意題。本文第一自然段是簡單介紹英國的新交通法規(guī)。A選項為“解釋”，C選項為“評論”，D為“背景”，故選B項“介紹”。

【2】計算題。由第一和第二自然段的敘述可知，違反交通法規(guī)繳納900英鎊罰款和當(dāng)場不能交罰款的外國司機(jī)罰款80英鎊，故總共繳納900+80=980英鎊。故選D。

【3】推理判斷題。根據(jù)文章最后一句Foreign drivers will not get points as punishment added to their licenses, while British drivers will.可知，故選D。

【4】推理判斷題。第六段第一句Foreign vehicles are 30 percent more likely to be in a crash than British-registered vehicles.(外來車輛比英國本地車輛多了百分之三十的事故率)；第七段第一句The new law is partly intended to settle the problem of foreign lorry drivers ignoring limits on weight and hours at the wheel.（這套新法規(guī)主要是想解決外國重型車駕駛者忽略車重限制和停車時間），所以新的交通法的主要目的是減少交通事故和傷亡，故選C。