Trafficstatisticspaintagloomypicture.Tohelpsolvetheirtrafficwoes,somerapidlygrowingU.S.citieshavesimplybuiltmoreroads.Buttrafficexpertssaybuildingmoreroadsisaquick-fixsolutionthatwillnotalleviatethetrafficprobleminthelongrun.Soaringlandcosts,increasingconcernoversocialandenvironmentaldisruptionscausedbyroad-building,andthelikelihoodthatmoreroadscanonlyleadtomorecarsandtrafficarepowerfulfactorsbearingdownona1950s-styleconstructionprogram. Thegoalofsmart-highwaytechnologyistomaketrafficsystemsworkatoptimumefficiencybytreatingtheroadandthevehiclestravelingonthemasanintegraltransportationsystem.Proponentsoftheadvancedtechnologysayelectronicdetectionsystems,closed-circuittelevision,radiocommunication,rampmetering,variablemessagesigning,andothersmart-highwaytechnologycannowbeusedatareasonablecosttoimprovecommunicationbetweendriversandthepeoplewhomonitortraffic. Pathfinder,aSantaMonica,California-basedsmart-highwayprojectinwhicha14-milestretchoftheSantaMonicaFreeway,makingupwhatiscalleda“smartcorridor”,isbeinginstrumentedwithburiedloopsinthepavement.Closed-circuittelevisioncamerassurveytheflowoftraffic,whilecommunicationlinkedtopropertyequippedautomobilesadvisemotoristsoftheleastcongestedroutesordetours. Notalltrafficexperts,however,looktosmart-highwaytechnologyastheultimatesolutiontotrafficgridlock.Somesaythehigh-techapproachislimitedandcanonlyoffertemporarysolutionstoaseriousproblem. “Electronicsonthehighwayaddressesjustoneaspectoftheproblem:howtoregulatetrafficmoreefficiently,”explainsMichaelRenner,seniorresearcherattheworld-watchInstitute.“Itdoesn’tdealwiththecentralproblemoftoomanycarsforroadsthatcan’tbebuiltfastenough.Itsendspeoplethewrongmessage”.Theystartthinking“Yes,thereusedtobeatrafficcongestionproblem,butthat’sbeensolvednowbecausewehaveadvancedhigh-techsysteminplace.”Larsonagreesandadds,“Smarthighwayisjustoneofthetoolsthatweusetodealwithourtrafficproblems.It’snotthesolutionitself,justpanofthepackage.Therearedifferentstrategies.” Othertrafficproblem-solvingoptionsbeingstudiedandexperimentedwithincludecarpooling,rapidmass-transitsystems,staggeredorflexibleworkhours,androadpricing,asystemwherebymotoristspayacertainamountforthetimetheyuseahighway. Itseemsthatweneedanew,majorthrusttodealwiththetrafficproblemsofthenext20years.Therehastobeabigchange. Whatistheappropriatetitleforthepassage?
A.Smart Highway Projects—The Ultimate Solution to Traffic Congestion. B.A Quick Fix Solution for the Traffic Problems. C.A Venture to Remedy Traffic Woes. D.Highways Get Smart—Part of the Package to Relieve Traffic Gridlock.正确答案D
