Travelers now believe that the root cause for failures of British railway is
[A] its structural design.
[B] the pursuit of profit.
[C] its inefficient network.
[D] the lack of safety guarantees.
第1题：
Text 3
Who's to blame? The trail of responsibility goes beyond poor maintenance of British railways, say industry critics. Stingy governments-both Labor and Tory-have cut down on investments in trains and rails.ln the mid-1990s a Conservative government pushed through the sale of the entire subsidy-guzzling rail network. Operating franchises were parceled out among private comparues and a separate firm,Railtrack, was awarded ownership of the tracks and stations. In the future, the theory ran back then, the private sector could pay for any improvements-with a little help from the state-and take the blame for any failings.
Today surveys show that travelers believe privatization is one of the reasons for the railways 's failures. They ask whether the pursuit of profits is compatible with guaranteeing safety. Worse, splitting the network between companies has made coordination nearly impossible. "The railway was tom apart at privatization and the structure that was put in place was. . . designed, if we are honest, to maximize the proceeds to the Treasury," said Railtrack boss Gerald Corbett before resigning last month in the wake of the Hatfield crash.
Generally, the contrasts with mainland Europe are stark. Over the past few decades the Germans, French and Italians have invested 50 percent more than the British in transportation infrastructure. As a result, a web of high-speed trains now crisscross the Continent, funded by governments willing to commit state funds to major capital projects. Spain is currently planning l,000 miles of new high- speed track.ln France superfast trains already shuttle between all major cities, often on dedicated lines. And in Britain? When the Eurostar trains that link Paris, London and Brussels emerge from the Channel Tunnel onto British soil and join the crowded local network, they must slow down from 186 mph to a maximum of 100 mph-and they usually have to go even slower.
For once, the government is listening. After all, commuters are voters, too. In a pre-vote spending spree, the govemment has committed itself to huge investment in transportation, as well as education and the public health service. Over the next 10 years, the railways should get an extra ￡60 billion, partly through higher subsidies to the private companies. As Blair ackoowledged last month, " Britain has been underinvested in and investment is central to Britain's future. " You don't have to tell the 3 million passengers who use the railways every day. Last week trains to Darlington were an hour late-and crawling at Locomotion No.l speeds.
51. In the first paragraph, the author tries to
[ A] trace the tragedy to its defective origin.
[ B] remind people of Britain's glonous past.
[ C] explain the failure of Britain's rail network.
[ D] call for impartiality in assessing the situation.
第2题：
another reason for british decline is the loss of its colonies，especially india，which gained its independence in 1 947. ii ()
第3题：
．FDA can ask for the proof of safety and effectiveness of a product ________.
A. if it is a drug
B. if it is a device
C. if its consumers make complaints
D. if its distributors challenge FDA’s authority
第4题：
According to the passage，the major disadvantage of newspapers in its_______
A．high cost
B．lack of changes
C．slow speed
D．lack of interaction
第5题：
Why is the British bank able to offer its customer a banker's draft drawn in dollar?
A．Its US correspondent bank prefers to make the payment.
B．It will send dollar in cash by airmail.
C．It has a dollar account with another bank in an American city where the beneficiary lives.
D．Its customer has a dollar account with it.
第6题：
A faculty ;
B facilitate ;
C facility
第7题：
according to the text，the most important single factor which influences british policy- makers is its history. ()
第8题：
The city failed to look after its schools,_________ it spent over $ 1 billion on its museums and stadiums.
A． now that
B． whereas
C． because
D． as long as
第9题：
We may safely conclude that ______.
A) the author belongs to the anti-railway group
B) the author belongs to the pro-railway group
C) the author speaks highly of the railway
D) the author may never take train because of its potential dangers
第10题：
A tug is "in irons" when held in a fixed position by ______.
A.the weight of its tow，its being anchored，or grounded
B.the weight of its towing hawser on the bottom
C.an adverse current
D.lack of power or an engine breakdown