Question

The world’s first subway was built in London in 1863. At the time，the government was looking for a way to reduce traffic problems in the city of London. The poor areas of the city were so crowded with people that it was almost impossible for horse carriages to get through. The city officials were interested in trying to make it possible for workers to live outside of London and travel easily to work each day. If people had a cheap and convenient way that they could depend on to go to and from work, they would relocate their homes outside of the city. This would help ease(減輕) the pressure of too many people living in the poor parts of London. From these problems，the idea of the London Underground，the first subway system，was born.

The plans for building the Underground met with several problems and delays，but the fast track was finally opened in January 1863. A steam train pulled the cars along the fast underground track which was 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) long. About 30，000 people got on the subway the first day. Riders were treated to comfortable seats (standing up while the train was moving was not allowed)，and pleasant decorations inside each of the cars. However, the smoke from the engine soon filled the air in the tunnels with ash and soot(煤灰), as well as chemical gases. Fans had to be put in the tunnels later to keep the air clean enough for people to breathe. Even with its problems，riding in the Underground did catch on. It carried 9 million riders in its first year.

1.What led the British government to build the London Underground？

A. Traffic jams and pollution.

B. Population and pollution.

C. Overcrowding and traffic jams.

D. The poverty and subway problems.

2.How did the London Underground solve the smoke problem？

A. It made the tunnels larger.

B. It put fans in the tunnels.

C. It cleaned the chemical gases in the tunnels.

D. It reduced the number of passengers riding in the train.

3.The underlined phrase “catch on” most probably means “______”.

A. be troublesome

B. become popular and fashionable

C. keep up with

D. seize

4. Which of the following is TRUE？

A. To relocate the workers’ homes outside London，the government built the subway.

B. There were so many problems and delays that in 18th century the first subway opened.

C. The subway greatly eased the pressure of traffic.

D. There were not enough seats for the passengers the first day the subway opened.

Answer 1

1.C

2.B

3.B

4.A

【解析】

試題分析：為了減輕倫敦的交通壓力和減輕窮人們的負擔，世界上的第一條地鐵在1863年在倫敦開通。這一重大的發(fā)明給人類文明進步做出了巨大貢獻。

1.1】C細節(jié)題：第一段中提到了the government was looking for a way to reduce traffic problems in the city of London和The poor areas of the city were so crowded with people，表示正是因為交通問題很嚴重，城市非常擁擠，是導(dǎo)致倫敦政府修建地鐵的直接原因。答案選C。

2. had to be put in the tunnels later to keep the air clean enough for people to breathe為了去除煙霧，人們在隧道中安裝了風扇。答案選B。

3. with its problems盡管問題很多，而下文又提到了It carried 9 million riders in its first year.說明了catch on應(yīng)該是表示這種交通工具還是很受大眾歡迎的。答案選B。

4. people had a cheap and convenient way that they could depend on to go to and from work, they would relocate their homes outside of the city人們希望能夠有一種方便又實惠的交通工具來上下班，而地鐵的發(fā)明正好讓它實現(xiàn)了。

考點：考查說明文閱讀。