Transports of Delight?

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Activity 1
How many different modes of transport can you think of?

Activity 2
Discuss with other students the advantages and disadvantages of 5 of the means of transport you
thought of in Activity 1.

Activity 3
Put the correct form of the following idioms into the gaps below.
• to sail through: to do something, or to deal with something, very easily. “She
sailed through the first interview.”
• to take on board: fully consider or assimilate a new idea or situation.
"we've got to take accusations of bribery on board.”
• to miss the boat: to lose an opportunity to do something by being slow to act. “There
were tickets available last week, but he missed the boat by waiting till today to try to buy
some.”
• in the same boat: be in the same situation as your friend, for example.
• to go overboard: to go to extremes, especially as a result of enthusiasm.
"He went overboard to please his in-laws".
• all shipshape:
Orderly and neat; tidy: made sure the room was shipshape before the guests arrived.
1. We spent ages tidying and cleaning the classroom so that it was ...............for the new teacher.
2. Do you find learning English pronunciation hard?
Yes, I do.
Me too, so we’re................................
3. Last year my English teacher offered us free English lessons but I didn’t take the opportunity.
Now I want them but she’s not offering them any more so I’ve .......................
4. He ....................................... his last English test with no difficulty at all.
5. She’s bought a new English dictionary, a dictionary of phrasal verbs and idioms and a
subscription to an English newspaper. It’s too much. I think she’s .....................................
6. He listened carefully to his English teacher’s advice and agreed to act on it. You could say that
he ........................ all the advice he was given.

Activity 4
With your partner choose the correct option in the sentences below.

1. Nearly (a) 25% (b) 50% (c) 75% of all crashes occur on roads in built-up areas.
2. Approximately (a) 33% (b) 50% (c) 66% of all road crashes are due to driving too fast.
3. Approximately (a) 22% (b) 52% (c) 82% of deaths and injuries in road accidents are due to
driving while under the influence of alcohol.
4. Estimates suggest that (a) 2% (b) 6% (c) 10% of collisions on roads happen when the driver is
tired and/or falls asleep at the wheel.
5. Defective vehicles account for approximately (a) 5% (b) 10% (c) 15% of road crashes.
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Activity 5
Read the following questions and use them to begin a conversation with your partner.

1. What do you think should be done to increase road safety?

2. At what age, or in what circumstances, should people stop driving for good?
3. What can be done to encourage people to use their cars less and public transport more?
4. Winston Churchill said “Cars are the curse of the 20th century”. To what extent do you think
they will be the curse of the 21st century too?

Activity 6
Read the following questions and use them to begin a conversation with your partner.

1. What annoys you most about other drivers?

2. Have you ever broken the speed limit, driven the wrong way along a one-way street, overtaken
on the inside, driven while drunk, etc?
3. How would your life be different if cars were banned? Think of three ways in which you would
benefit from the banning of cars.

Activity 7

Transports of Delight?
The sky’s the limit – or is it?
Testing times
The maiden flight of the Airbus A380 has been hailed as a major success. The flight, which took
place in France, lasted nearly four hours. The new plane landed at Toulouse International Airport,
everything having gone entirely to plan, according to the flight crew. The chief test pilot stated
that the aircraft was as easy to handle "as a bicycle"! The French president exclaimed that the
giant airliner was "the crowning achievement" of human industry. Britain’s Prime Minister
described it as "the most exciting aircraft in the world."

Simply the best

The historic flight (at 421 tonnes the Airbus A380 is the heaviest non-military plane ever to take
off) was the culmination of years of development and production involving four European
countries – France, Germany, Spain and the UK. The consortium formed by these countries
(EADS) boasts proudly that the double-decker Airbus A380 is superlative in a number of ways. At
73 metres it is at least 3 metres longer than its closest rival and has a wing-span approximately
20 metres wider. Its eighty metre wing-span is one of the reasons why airports such as Heathrow
in London are having to undergo redevelopment in an effort to accommodate the record-breaking
plane. Not only is Europe’s flagship commercial aircraft the heaviest, longest and widest ever to
take to the skies, but it can also carry the largest number of passengers – 555 being the typical
capacity but the maximum capacity being as much as 853. By comparison the Airbus's nearest
rival for the long-haul flight market, the American Boeing 747, can carry approximately 400
passengers.
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Battle for the skies

Boeing appears unconcerned about the potential threat posed by the huge new airliner: they are
quick to point out that the last pan-European aircraft (the Anglo-French Concorde) was not a
financial success and only 14 were ever used commercially. However, the Airbus already has
orders from at least 15 airline companies including Singapore Airlines, Quantas and Emirates.

1. Is the article “The sky’s the limit – or is it?” mainly about the Boeing 747 or the Airbus A380?
2. Who said that the aircraft was as easy to handle “as a bicycle”?
3. Which four countries comprise the international consortium known as EADS?
4. What is the answer to the Quick Quiz?

Activity 8

‘In sixty years’ time cars will be history