每日英語 #045: Closing Rest Areas

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Closing Rest Areas

A “rest area” (also called a rest stop or service area) is an area next to a freeway or highway that has, at the very least, restrooms and drinking fountains. Some rest areas are a little more “elaborate” (fancy; with more things), with such things as “grassy” (with grass) areas around the buildings where children can play, “picnic tables” (long tables with benches attached used for outdoor eating), and “vending machines” (machines you put money into to buy snack food or drinks).

「休息區」（也叫做休息站或服務區）是位於高速公路旁的一個區域，至少設有洗手間和飲水機。一些休息區更為精緻（豪華；有更多設施），例如建築周圍有草坪（有草的）供兒童遊玩，野餐桌（長桌附有長凳，供戶外用餐），以及自動販賣機（投入金錢後可購買零食或飲料的機器）。

These basic rest areas are a public service maintained by the government. During poor economic times, however, many states have in the past temporarily closing many of their rest areas to save money.

這些基本的休息區是由政府維護的公共服務。然而，在經濟不景氣時，許多州曾暫時關閉多處休息區以節省開支。

That’s not to say that there is no place to stop on a long drive to use the restroom. While many rest areas are maintained by the government, many other service areas are formed by a collection of privately owned businesses “catering to” (designed for) travelers. These service areas include restaurants, gas stations, and even hotels or motels.

這並不是說在長途駕駛中沒有地方停下來使用洗手間。雖然許多休息區是由政府維護的，但許多其他服務區則是由專為旅客設計的私人企業組成的，這些服務區包括餐廳、加油站，甚至是酒店或汽車旅館。

Rest areas should not be confused with “truck stops,” which are areas near freeways designed specifically for “truckers,” men and women who drive large trucks to transport goods from one place to another. These truck stops have restaurants and restrooms, but they also have gas stations with “diesel fuel,” the type of gasoline that most large trucks use, and specially designed fueling “bays” (areas) for large trucks.

休息區不應與「卡車停靠站」混淆，後者是專為卡車司機（開大卡車運送貨物的男男女女）設計的高速公路旁區域。這些卡車停靠站設有餐廳和洗手間，但它們也有提供柴油的加油站，這是大多數大型卡車使用的燃料，還有專為大型卡車設計的加油區（區域）。

In many movies, the truck stop is “depicted” (shown) as a “seedy” (not very nice; shabby) place where “small-time” (minor) criminals and “prostitutes” (men or women who sell sex for money) gather. While no doubt some truck stops are better than others, this is not an “accurate” (correct) picture of current truck stops, which are “for the most part” (generally) relatively modern, clean, and safe areas.

在許多電影中，卡車停靠站被描繪成一個不太好的（破舊的）地方，小型罪犯和妓女（賣淫者）聚集的地方。儘管有些卡車停靠站確實比其他的好，但這並不是現今卡車停靠站的準確描述，現在的卡車停靠站大多（通常）是相對現代化、乾淨且安全的地方。

重要單字

• Rest area /rɛst ˈɛriə/ 休息區
• Elaborate /ɪˈlæbərɪt/ 精緻的
• Grassy /ˈɡræsɪ/ 草地的
• Picnic table /ˈpɪknɪk ˈteɪbl/ 野餐桌
• Vending machine /ˈvɛndɪŋ məˈʃiːn/ 自動販賣機
• Cater to /ˈkeɪtər tuː/ 迎合
• Truck stop /trʌk stɒp/ 卡車停靠站
• Trucker /ˈtrʌkər/ 卡車司機
• Diesel fuel /ˈdiːzəl fjʊəl/ 柴油
• Bay /beɪ/ 區域
• Depict /dɪˈpɪkt/ 描繪
• Seedy /ˈsiːdi/ 破舊的
• Small-time /ˈsmɔːlˌtaɪm/ 小型的
• Prostitute /ˈprɒstɪˌtuːt/ 賣淫者
• Accurate /ˈækjərət/ 準確的
• For the most part /fɔr ðə moʊst pɑrt/ 大多數