自行车可减少对中东的石油需求

Bicycles Mean Less Demand for Fuel in East Asia

Millions of people in cities across Asia are using phone apps to borrow bicycles for local travel.

This kind of technology is made for people who want to leave cars and motorcycles at home, and avoid spending money on a taxi service.

The Reuters news agency reports that bicycle sharing has been rising in popularity in places like Beijing, Taipei and Singapore.

China’s Ministry¹ of Transport reports that the two-year bike-sharing trend has put over 16 million bikes in China alone. It adds that more than 100 million Chinese have registered for bike-sharing. That has reduced car use and demand for gasoline. Economists² have predicted that demand for fuel will likely stop rising by the year 2025.

“I often use bike-sharing services because it’s very convenient,” said 36-year-old Wei Zhang, who uses a shared bike several times a week to go to work. “I can find it anywhere and will not worry about losing the bike,” the Beijing native added.

No one knows the exact number of bicycles on China’s streets or how much bike-sharing has affected³ fuel demand. But the government, oil companies and a study by Reuters all found that fewer people are using cars.

“Bike-sharing has been crazy since late last year,” said Harry⁴ Liu, who works as an advisor⁵ for IHS Market. He added that more people are using public transportation because they know they can finish their trip with a shared bicycle.

Even before the popularity of bike-sharing, observers were saying that the rising use of electric cars and better fuel efficiency meant an end for gasoline’s big growth story.

China’s gasoline demand growth is expected to slow to nearly 4 percent this year, compared with 6.5 percent growth last year. That information comes from Sri Paravaikkarasu, head of East of Suez oil at Facts Global Energy.

Asian bikes, Asian cities

Last month, a Chinese bike-sharing start-up company opened offices in Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok and Washington, D.C. The company, called Mobike, was launched in April 2016. Another Chinese company, Ofo, provides a similar service. The two businesses have received more than $2 billion in private investment.

Mobike has 7 million bicycles worldwide. Ofo has more than 10 million, and plans to increase the number to 20 million in the next three months.

In Taiwan, the government supports a bike-sharing plan. Officials hope to have 12 percent of commuters using bicycles in trips to work by 2020. Five percent of commuters use bicycles now.

The Taipei city government hopes to have every citizen just 10 minutes from a bike by 2018.

Harry Liu of IHS said that bike-sharing could change the way people think about mobility⁷ and could change the transportation business.

I’m Susan Shand.

Words in This Story

phone app – n. a computer program that performs an activity

trend – n. something that is currently popular or fashionable

convenient - adj. allowing you to do something easily or without trouble

crazy – adj. wildly; very excited

commuter⁶ - n. a person who travels regularly to and from a place

1 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

2 economists   

n.经济学家，经济专家( economist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
• Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

4 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

5 advisor   

n.顾问，指导老师，劝告者

参考例句：

• They employed me as an advisor.他们聘请我当顾问。
• The professor is engaged as a technical advisor.这位教授被聘请为技术顾问。

6 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。

7 mobility   

n.可动性，变动性，情感不定

参考例句：

• The difference in regional house prices acts as an obstacle to mobility of labour.不同地区房价的差异阻碍了劳动力的流动。
• Mobility is very important in guerrilla warfare.机动性在游击战中至关重要。