阅读理解
According to a concerned 1997 article in the Boston Globe, the United States spent less than one percent of its transportation budget on facilities for pedestrians (行人) . Actually, I''m surprised it was that much. Go to almost any suburb developed in the last 30 years, and you will not find a sidewalk anywhere. Often you won''t find a single pedestrian crossing.
I was made fully aware of this one summer when we were driving across Maine and stopped for coffee in one of those endless zones of shopping malls (购物中心) , motels, gas stations and fast-food places. I noticed there was a bookstore across the street, so I decided to forget coffee and go there to have a look.
Although the bookshop was no more than 70 or 80 feet away, I discovered that there was no way to cross over six lanes of swiftly moving traffic on foot without putting myself in danger. In the end, I had to get in our car and drive across.
At the time, it seemed ridiculous and annoying, but afterward I realized that I was possibly the only person ever to have thought of crossing the street on foot.
The fact is, we not only don''t walk anywhere anymore in this country, we won''t walk anywhere, and dislike anyone who tries to make US, as the city of Laconia, N.H. discovered. In the early 1970s, Laconia spent millions on a comprehensive urban renewal project, which included building a pedestrian mall to make shopping more pleasant. Esthetically (美学上) it was a triumph—urban planners came from all over to praise and take photos—but commercially it was a disaster. Forced to walk one whole block from a parking garage, shoppers abandoned downtown Laconia for suburban malls.
In 1994 Laconia dug up its pretty paving blocks, took away the flowers and decorative trees, and brought back the cars. Now people can park right in front of the stores again, and downtown Laconia thrives again.
And if that isn''t sad, I don''t know what is.
单选题
In Paragraph 1, "I'm surprised it was that much" means the author thinks______.
【正确答案】
C
【答案解析】本题的出处在文章的第一段。作者介绍到，“美国用于人行道设施上的开销在其交通预算中不足1％”，尽管如此，作者对这个不足1％的数字还是感到吃惊，认为比他预想的还是要大，因为根据他的观察，用于建设人行道设施的资金严重不足。接着举例说明在这方面投入的严重不足，声称在过去30年里开发的郊区，几乎连一条人行道都找不到。这个问题应该从两方面来看。其一，预算比作者预想的要高，因为，他“很吃惊预算会有那么多”(I'm surprised it was that much)。其二，根据他的观察，他感觉政府在这方面花的钱实在太少!许多考生可能把题干中的amount看作作者通过观察而感觉到的投入量，由此推断预算数量比作者预想的要少，因此选了D项。其实，“预算数量”与“感觉到的投入量”不是一回事。
单选题
In Maine the author had to drive to a bookstore 70 or 80 feet away because______.
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】第三段中讲到there was no way to cross over six lanes of swiftly moving traffic on foot without putting myself in danger。这句话的意思是，步行穿过有车辆快速行驶的车道是十分危险的，因此可以推断没有人行道直接去马路对面的书店，作者只好开车绕道去那里，所以A是正确答案。
单选题
According to the author, most Americans______.