每日英語 #105: Traffic Cameras 交通攝像機

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Traffic Cameras 交通攝像機

If you drive in Los Angeles, be ready to have your picture taken. As of September 2008, at about 175 “intersections” (places where two streets cross) in the Los Angeles area, you will find cameras ready to take your picture if you break the law.

如果你在洛杉磯開車，準備好被拍照吧。截至2008年9月，在洛杉磯地區大約有175個「路口」（兩條街道交叉的地方），你會發現攝像機準備好在你違法時拍下你的照片。

The idea behind the traffic cameras, the government says, is to “reduce” (lower) the number of “collisions” (when two things, usually cars, hit each other violently) when people “run a red light,” which is when drivers continue driving after the traffic light has already turned red, telling them to stop. When drivers run red lights, they can cause head-on collisions, where the two cars’ front ends hit each other, or one car can “side-swipe” another, which is when one car hits the side of another car. The “rationale” (explanation; reasoning) for using these cameras is that they will make driving safer.

政府表示，交通攝像機的設計理念是為了「減少」（降低）當人們「闖紅燈」（當紅燈亮時，駕駛者仍繼續行駛）時的「碰撞」（通常是兩輛車劇烈碰撞）的次數。當駕駛者闖紅燈時，他們可能會造成正面碰撞，即兩輛車的車頭相撞，或者一輛車「擦撞」另一輛車，這是指一輛車撞到另一輛車的側面。使用這些攝像機的「理由」（解釋；推理）是，它們會使駕駛更加安全。

If a driver breaks a traffic law in one of these intersections, the camera takes a picture of the car showing the license plate and perhaps of the driver, and a copy of that picture is mailed to the driver with the ticket.

如果駕駛者在這些路口中的任何一處違反交通法規，攝像機會拍下該車的照片，顯示車牌號，甚至可能拍到駕駛者，然後該照片的副本會連同罰單一起郵寄給駕駛者。

However, many unhappy drivers say that the real reason for the cameras is to increase “revenue” (earnings; money that is received) for the city. As of 2008, a ticket costs about $175 for illegal right turns and about $400 for running a red light. About 80% of the tickets are for illegal right turns. In the U.S., drivers can make legal right turns even when the light is red if no cars are coming if they first make a full and complete stop. Those who don’t make a complete stop can get a $175 ticket. Some people say that not making a full stop is not really unsafe and allowing tickets for this minor “offense” (breaking of the law) is just the city’s way of making more money.

然而，許多不滿的駕駛者表示，安裝這些攝像機的真正原因是為了增加城市的「收入」（收入；獲得的金錢）。截至2008年，非法右轉罰單約為175美元，而闖紅燈則約為400美元。約80%的罰單是因為非法右轉。在美國，駕駛者即使在紅燈時，只要完全停車並確認沒有來車，也可以合法右轉。而那些沒有完全停車的人可能會收到175美元的罰單。有些人認為，未完全停車並不是真的不安全，而對這種輕微的「違法行為」（違法行為）開罰單只是城市賺錢的一種方式。

 重要單字

1. Intersection /ˌɪntərˈsɛkʃən/ - 路口，交叉點
2. Reduce /rɪˈdjuːs/ - 減少，降低
3. Collision /kəˈlɪʒən/ - 碰撞，撞擊
4. Run a red light /rʌn ə rɛd laɪt/ - 闖紅燈
5. Side-swipe /saɪd swaɪp/ - 擦撞
6. Rationale /ˌræʃəˈnæl/ - 理由，理論依據
7. Revenue /ˈrɛvənjuː/ - 收入，稅收
8. Offense /əˈfɛns/ - 違法行為