VOA标准英语2009年-Inventive New Yorkers Develop Bamboo Bicyc

By Paige Kollock
New York
17 October 2009

 
A bamboo bike
In major U.S. cities, bicycling is increasingly seen as an environmentally-friendly way to get around.  New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has launched a campaign to promote bicycling by adding bike lanes and proposing a tax on cars that drive on city streets. In 2008, an estimated 185,000 New Yorkers bicycled to work, an increase of 35 percent over the previous year.  Now one New York bike studio is teaching people how to make their own bikes.

Bikers in New York are all over the place. There are fast bikers, leisurely¹ bikers, and of course, messengers on bikes.

Now there's a new type of biker on the horizon, the bamboo biker.  Thanks to a group of innovative² guys in New York's Brooklyn borough³, people can learn how to make their own ride.

Bamboo Bike Studio co-owner Marty Odlin says the great thing about bamboo is that it is sustainable and plentiful⁴. "Our specific bamboo grows all throughout New York City. We generally go to places that have large quantities of bamboo, and most of the people are really happy for us to take it," he says.

In fact, bamboo grows so fast, it's like a weed and people are eager to get rid of it.

Odlin and his partners work out of a small studio, where they are developing the prototype of a bamboo bike they hope one day to sell.  They collect the bamboo, cut it and weld it to make it more durable⁵.

The company holds weekend classes to teach people how to make their own bikes.

At more than $1,000 a class, it's not exactly cheap. But Odlin says the money is going to a good cause.  The goal is to use the profits to bring bamboo bike technology to developing countries. "A bicycle in a developing country right now, a popular Chinese steel bicycle, is about $110 to $120. A bamboo bike, made locally, with local labor⁶ could cost about $55, if you make it on a large scale.  So, what that does, is that provides cheap transportation to a massive part of the population that can't afford it right now," he says.

Odlin says he and his partners are pouring all of their income into startup costs and technology.

But one expense he doesn't have to worry about....is transportation.

1 leisurely   

adj.悠闲的；从容的，慢慢的

参考例句：

• We walked in a leisurely manner,looking in all the windows.我们慢悠悠地走着，看遍所有的橱窗。
• He had a leisurely breakfast and drove cheerfully to work.他从容的吃了早餐，高兴的开车去工作。

2 innovative   

adj.革新的，新颖的，富有革新精神的

参考例句：

• Discover an innovative way of marketing.发现一个创新的营销方式。
• He was one of the most creative and innovative engineers of his generation.他是他那代人当中最富创造性与革新精神的工程师之一。

3 borough   

n.享有自治权的市镇；(英)自治市镇

参考例句：

• He was slated for borough president.他被提名做自治区主席。
• That's what happened to Harry Barritt of London's Bromley borough.住在伦敦的布罗姆利自治市的哈里.巴里特就经历了此事。

4 plentiful   

adj.富裕的，丰富的

参考例句：

• Their family has a plentiful harvest this year.他们家今年又丰收了。
• Rainfall is plentiful in the area.这个地区雨量充足。

5 durable   

adj.持久的，耐久的

参考例句：

• This raincoat is made of very durable material.这件雨衣是用非常耐用的料子做的。
• They frequently require more major durable purchases.他们经常需要购买耐用消费品。

6 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。