题型:阅读理解 题类:模拟题 难易度:普通
山东省临沂实验学校2020届高三英语高考模拟卷(九)
The Indian government may use 3D paintings as virtual speed-breakers on major highways and roads, in an attempt to check speeding and careless driving,and eventually make its deadly roads a little safer. "We are trying out 3D paintings used as virtual speed breakers to avoid unnecessary requirements of speed breakers," India's transport minister Nitin Gadkari tweeted.
The visual illusions (幻象) are supposed to encourage drivers to slow down automatically. Earlier this month, India had ordered the removal of all speed breakers from highways, which are considered to be a danger to safety for high-speed vehicles.
India has the highest number of road accident deaths in the world. According to the World Health Organisation, over 20,000 people are killed by road accidents due to poor application of road safety laws. This is considerably higher than its official figures of 141,526 for 2014.
The use of visual illusions as speed breakers was first pioneered in the American city of Philadelphia in 2008, as part of a campaign against speeding motorists. The technique has also been tried out in China to create floating 3D crossings.
In India, cities such as Ahmedabad and Chennai have already experimented with 3D zebra crossings in the last one year. In Ahmedabad for instance, two artists, mother and daughter have painted 3D crosswalks in the first few months of this year. The artists say their motto is "to increase the attention of drivers", and that the concept has been successfully tested in zones where accidents easily occur on a highway.
However, critics argue that once drivers know that these speed breakers are visual illusions, they may ignore them. Others also point out that India's decision does not consider the safety of a large number of walkers. In the end, the new policy may be just one step towards improving road safety.
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