AS IT IS 2016-03-08 Americans Drove More in 2015

AS IT IS 2016-03-08 Americans Drove More in 2015

Americans drove more miles in 2015 than any year since the U.S. government started keeping records 45 years ago.

The U.S. Department of Transportation recently reported that Americans drove a record 3.148 trillion miles last year.

In case you are wondering, that is enough to take 337 round trips from Earth to Pluto¹.

There are number of reasons Americans are driving more, according to experts.

The first is the price of gas, which has dropped to 2004 levels in the past year. The American Automobile² Association said the average price of unleaded regular gasoline is $1.71 a gallon, or 45.17 cents per liter. That is the lowest price since 2004.

P.J. Sriraj, interim³ executive director of the Urban Transportation Center at the University of Chicago, said the lower cost to fill up a car or truck is just one reason Americans are driving more.

Another reason is that more Americans are back to work after the 2008 recession, and driving to their jobs, he said.

More Americans are also traveling longer distances to get to jobs, Sriraj said.

There are increased numbers of Americans who must travel more than 45 miles per day for their jobs, he said.

And for many, there are no, or not enough, public transit⁴ options. Sriraj said.

There is a downside to increased driving. Roads are more crowded, Sriraj said. And while modern automobiles⁵ and trucks are more fuel efficient and less polluting, the improvements are not enough to offset⁶ more cars on the road, Sriraj said.

“Because we’re driving more, it’s a wash in terms of pollution,” Sriraj told VOA Learning English.

Words in This Story

Pluto - n. the object in our solar system that in the past was thought to be the planet farthest from the sun but that is no longer considered to be a planet

option – n. the ability to choose something or to choose between two or more things

efficient - adj. - capable of producing desired results without wasting materials, time, or energy

a wash - adj. no difference

1 Pluto   

n.冥王星

参考例句：

• Pluto is the furthest planet from the sun.冥王星是离太阳最远的行星。
• Pluto has an elliptic orbit.冥王星的轨道是椭圆形的。

2 automobile   

n.汽车，机动车

参考例句：

• He is repairing the brake lever of an automobile.他正在修理汽车的刹车杆。
• The automobile slowed down to go around the curves in the road.汽车在路上转弯时放慢了速度。

3 interim   

adj.暂时的，临时的；n.间歇，过渡期间

参考例句：

• The government is taking interim measures to help those in immediate need.政府正在采取临时措施帮助那些有立即需要的人。
• It may turn out to be an interim technology.这可能只是个过渡技术。

4 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。

5 automobiles   

n.汽车( automobile的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• When automobiles become popular,the use of the horse and buggy passed away. 汽车普及后，就不再使用马和马车了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Automobiles speed in an endless stream along the boulevard. 宽阔的林荫道上，汽车川流不息。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

6 offset   

n.分支，补偿；v.抵消，补偿

参考例句：

• Their wage increases would be offset by higher prices.他们增加的工资会被物价上涨所抵消。
• He put up his prices to offset the increased cost of materials.他提高了售价以补偿材料成本的增加。