Exercise 39 Choose the right answer consulting the text

1. Viewed from a distance, the train of the future looks like overgrown (skates, bobsled, skis) on stilts. 2.There is only the sound of air being parted by a vehicle travelling at (500mph, 200mph, 150mph) 3. Instead of rolling on rails, it actually flies in the air, supported the force of powerful (engines, skids, magnets). 4. A total of 6000km of (purpose built, conventional, planned) high-speed track is expected to be in use in Europe by 2010. 5. International transport (corridors, corporations, organisations) open up unprecedented forms of cooperation between the railways of North America, Asia, the Middle East, North Africa and Europe. 6. Differences in track gauges can now be overcome by developing systems that adjust (wheelsets, wagons, engines) automatically to the new gauge.

Exercise 40 Prove these statements with the facts from the text. Give your own opinion.

1. Railways are the only means of transport with a considerable potential for improvement. 2. High speed is the priority task and the decisive factor in the competition with air and road transport. 3. Tomorrow’s railways will also be more interoperable and intermodal. 4. Another crucial direction is setting up international transport corridors. 5. One of the most important tasks for international railway transport is to bring it into line with unified European and world standards.