Scheduled coach services

Maybe you are an adventurer and want to plan your own route, and take it at your own pace? Then Britain’s long-dis- tance coach network is just for you. Scheduled coaches run at regular intervals to every major town and city, and this is the most economical method of public transport. National Express is the largest operator, based at Victoria coach Station, Buck­ingham Palace Road, London SW 1.

You can buy individual tickets for each journey, but if you plan to do a lot of traveling, then a wise purchase is the Tourist Trail Pass. Purchase of this card provides unlimited travel on all National Express and Caledonian Express coach services in En­gland, Scotland and Wales for a choice of durations ranging from 3 to 15 days within a limited period.

TALKING POINTS

1. What are the advantages and disadvantages of travel­ing by coach and traveling by train?

2. Think about a coach journey you have been on. De­scribe it. Make sure you include words from the Word Bank.

PROJECT WORK ■■■■■■■■■■■■»■■

Finishing your work at this Unit you should prepare one of the parts of your project work:

— using tourist booklets make up an itinerary for the coach trip around a chosen country

Unit 8.Travelling by Car

WORD BANK ■ ■м->ш>_ВВЯВЯшшаа>

air-conditioning — кондиционирование to apply the brake — затормозить to be at the wheel — сесть за руль car accident — авария, ДТП carburettor — карбюратор to change gear — переключать скорость deposit — задаток; взнос, вклад driving licence — водительское удостоверение exceeding the regulation speed — превышение установленной скорости filling station — бензоколонка filling up — заправка

fitted with (a radio) — быть оборудованным (радио) gear — передача

to give smb a lift — подвезти кого-либо

hood — капот; складной верх

ignition — зажигание

in gear — включенный

to jack up — поднимать домкратом

joy-ride — увеселительная поездка

mechanic — механик

mileage — пробег в милях

motor-car — (авто)машина

out of gear — не включенный

petrol — бензин

to put on (out) the headlights — включать, выключать фары renting station (AmE: car rental agency) — агентство по про­кату автомобилей to run out of petrol — израсходовать весь бензин; остаться без бензина

saloon car (AmE: sedan) — тип закрытого кузова to set off — отправляться в путь to set smb down — высадить кого-либо

to sound a horn — дать сигнал, просигналить

step in (Get in) — Садитесь.

to step on it — давить газ

tank — (бензо)бак

taxi-rank — стоянка такси

windscreen — лобовое стекло

windscreen-wiper — «дворник»

wrench — гаечный ключ

TEXT 1 ■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■

THE TORTURES OF DRIVING

Owing to John’s slightly-strained wrist, Gerda, his wife, would have to drive, and Gerda, God help her, had never been able to begin to drive a car! Every time she changed gear, John would sit silent managing not to say anything, because he knew by bitter experience that when he did say anything Gerda be­came immediately worse. Curious that no one had ever been able to teach Gerda to change gear.

Gerda got into the driving seat and nervously pressed the starter. She pressed it again and again. John said:

“The car will start better, Gerda, if you switch on the en­gine.”

“Oh, dear, how stupid of me!” She shot a quick alarmed glance at him, but to her relief he was smiling, and remember­ing the conversation at lunch, she let in the clutch rather too suddenly, so that the car leapt forward from the kerb.

“Oh, God,” said John.

Gerda was momentarily deflected. The traffic lights she was approaching had been green for a long time. They were almost sure, she thought, to change before she got to them. She began to slow down. Still green.

John Christow forgot his resolution of keeping silent about Gerda’s driving and said: “What are you stopping for?”

“I thought the lights might change...” She pressed her foot on the accelerator, the car moved forward a little, just beyond the lights, then, unable to pick up, the engine stalled. The lights changed.

The cross-traffic hooted angrily.

John said, but quite pleasantly:

“You really are the worst driver in the world, Gerda!”

“I always find traffic lights so worrying. One doesn’t know just when they are going to change.”

John cast a quick sideways look at Gerda’s anxious unhap­py face. “Everything worries Gerda”, he thought, and tried to imagine what it must feel like to live in that state. But since he was not a man of much imagination, he could not picture it at all.

Gerda was relieved at John’s silence. She could cope with driving better if she were not distracted by conversation. Besides, if John was absorbed in thought, he was not so likely to notice that jarring noise of her occasional forced changes of gear. (She never changed if she could help it.)

There were times, Gerda knew, when she changed gear quite well (though never with confidence), but it never happened if John were in the car. Her nervous determination to do it right this time was almost disastrous, her hand fumbled, she acceler­ated too much or not enough, and she pushed the gear lever quickly and clumsily so that it shrieked in protest.

“Cars ought to be made so that you didn’t have that horri­ble grinding noise!”

But, on the whole, thought Gerda, as she began the ascent of Mersham Hill, this drive wasn’t going too badly. John was still absorbed in thought and he hadn’t noticed rather a bad crash­ing of gears in Croydon. Optimistically, as the car gained .speed, she changed up into third and immediately the car slackened. John, as it were, woke up.

“What on earth’s the point of changing up just when you’re coming to a steep bit?”

Gerda set her jaw. Not very much farther now. Not that she wanted to get there. No, indeed, she’d much rather drive on for hours and hours, even if John did lose his temper with her!

But now they were driving along Shovel, downflaming au­tumn woods all round them.

(by A.Christie)

Comprehension questions:

1. Was Gerda the best driver or the worst driver John ever saw in his life?

2. What had Gerda never been able to begin to do?

3. Did Jonn’s remarks make his wife nervous and unhappy or did she take no notice of them?

4. Why did Gerda keep pressing the starter again and again?

5. Why did the car leap forward with a jerk?

6. What was Gerda stopping for?

7. Why did the cross-traffic hoot angrily?

8. Why did Gerda always find the traffic lights so worrying?

9. Why was Gerda relieved at John’s silence?

10. Did John keep silent because he was enjoying the beauty of the autumn woods around them or for some other rea­son?

TEXT WORK ■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■

1. Phonetic Drill, Translate, transcribe and pronounce correctly:

gear, nervously, alarmed, anxious, absorbed, occasional, di­sastrous, ascent, jaw, autumn.

2. Make up an outline of the text. Write out the key words for each point of the outline.

3. Give all the derivatives to the words:

Move, light, cope, confidence, speed.

4. Give synonyms to the following words:

Silent, nervous, sudden, resolution, clumsy.

5. What phrases with the following nouns, verbs, and adjectives do you know?

Start; to press; quick; to keepf; to move; long; confidence.

DIALOGUE 1 ■■•■■■■■■■■■■■■■■

Read, memorize and dramatize the dialogue.

Mr and Mrs Kelly and their son James are out in their car. They are driving along a narrow road in the country. James is driving. Mr Kelly is sitting with James. Mrs Kelly is at the back.

Mrs. Kelly: Careful, James! There’s a bend and a level cross­ing. Look for the gates!

James: All right, mother. I’m going very slowly. Only for­

ty miles an hour. I can stop in fifty yards, or less than that.

Mrs. Kelly: Forty miles an hour isn’t slow! Here’s the bend. Do be careful!

James: We’re down to twenty miles an hour now.

Mrs. Kelly: The gates are closed, you see. Here’s the train. Isn’t it a long one?

Mr. Kelly: The man’s coming. He’s going to open the gates. Get ready to go, James.

(five minutes later)...

Mrs. Kelly: Careful, James! There’s the sign for a crossroads. James: All right, mother. I’ve seen it.

Mr. Kelly: James is a very good driver, dear. Motoring isn’t dangerous if the driver is careful.

Mrs. Kelly: Oh, I know James is a careful driver. Look! There’s a large van coming along other road.

James: I’ve seen it, mother. Don’t worry!

1. Supply the missing prepositions or adverbs:

1. Just drive ..., I’ll show you where to stop. 2. The car was

drawn . the side of the road. 3. The car leapt the kerb.

4. He waved his hand ... me as I drove ... . 5. You must slow ... when you drive ... a school. 6. What are you stopping ... ? — I thought the lights might change. 7. The car stopped just... the point where the road began to ascend. 8. You’ve forgotten to switch... the engine. 9. The car stopped just... the lights. 10. The driver had just drawn the filling station to get some petrol.

2. Who looks ... your car? 12. We picked him our way ...

the station. 13.1 got ... the car and drove ... . 14. Shall I take you ... the station ... my car? 15. The engine started and the car moved .... 16. He came all the way... Kalinin ... car. 17. When Oleg drove ... his wife was busy cooking supper... the kitchen.

18. The lights have been green ... a long time, they may change

... the red any moment. 19. They drove hours and hours

without saying a word. 20. My trouble is that I become absent- minded ... the wheel and am not able to act quickly.

2. Give Russian equivalents of:

a woman driver, teaching one’s wife to drive a car is the worst job you can think of, to cause fewer accidents, the number of deaths on the roads, a commercial van, a lorry, to drive only oc­casionally, to drive for long distances, to drive for long times, to be at the wheel, a driving licence, to hold a driving licence.

3. Translate into Russian:

1. The engine is running noisily.

2. The car is gathering speed.

3. Don’t exceed the speed limit.

4. The brake is out of action.

5. Have you a spare tyre?

6. The tyre punctured a mile from home.

7. We’ll have to let the air out and pump up the tyre again.

8. I have run out of petrol.

9. I want to recharge my battery.

10. What is the horsepower (h.p) of the engine?

11. What make is your car?

TEXT 2