Cycling in Asia: Opening New Roads to Sustainability1

文/梅迪琳·馬尼博 譯/方雅齡 審訂/錢多秀

Cycling in Asia: Opening New Roads to Sustainability1

文/梅迪琳·馬尼博 譯/方雅齡 審訂/錢多秀

Asia’s rising middle class may be driving the increase in car ownership, leading to traf fi c congestion2congestion阻塞；擁擠。and air pollution in the region’s cities,but this status symbol3status symbol社會地位象征（指能表示某種身份的器物、生活作風等）。may be slowly giving way to an old love―cycling.

[2]More Asians are jumping on a bicycle for fresh air and to lead a more environmentally-friendly and active lifestyle in recent years as staying sedentary4sedentary久坐的；固定不動的。inside a car for hours on end could take a toll on5take a toll on sth造成損壞。one’s health, and be hard on the wallet because of the high cost of fuel and maintenance.

[3]In a new study of vehicle ownership in 44 countries and regions by Pew Research Center6皮尤研究中心，美國一家獨立性民調(diào)機構(gòu)，總部設(shè)于華盛頓特區(qū)。, households around the world own bicycles more than motorcycles and cars. Japan and Thailand rank second and third in terms of bike ownership globally, although these two countries also rank high in car ownership, with 81 per cent and 51 per cent of their populations owning at least one vehicle.

[4]Despite growing car ownership in China, only 17 per cent of households have cars, while 65 per cent have a bicycle, according to the Pew survey.China is also leading the world in the number of bike-sharing7bike-sharing共享單車，指企業(yè)在校園、地鐵站點、公交站點、居民區(qū)、商業(yè)區(qū)、公共服務(wù)區(qū)等提供的自行車共享服務(wù)。schemes,with about 170 bike-sharing systems operating in the country.

[5]In Southeast Asia, Singapore,which is known for its efficient public transport system but has no established culture of cycling as a transport option,is one of the countries now keen to change that. It is spending S$43 million on bike lanes and cycling facilities as part of a national cycling plan.

[6]Meanwhile, in Thailand, where 74 per cent of residents own a bike based on the Pew study, the government has promised to increase bike lanes by 10 kilometres in capital Bangkok from the current 232 kilometres to include other areas that do not have cycling routes.

[7]Seventy-eight percent of households in Japan are bicycle owners, the second highest in the world after Germany.

Stumbling blocks8 stumbling block 絆腳石。

[8]Ku Manahan, a resident of Quezon City in Metro Manila and a photographer by profession, has been cycling about 42 kilometres daily to and from work for three years now. He says bike lanes would be highly beneficial for cyclists like him, as he has encountered problems with motorists,who often disregard9disregard不顧；忽視。cyclists, putting their lives in danger.

[9]“The pollution is also a major problem, because since we are usually breathing heavily due to aerobic activity, we are breathing in more of the pollutants, causing respiratory10respiratory呼吸的；與呼吸有關(guān)的。problems. Even a few feet away from traf fi c would make a huge difference in the pollution that we are breathing in,”he tellsEco-Business.

[10]As for companies, bicycle parking and a shower and locker room would help encourage employees to cycle to work, Manahan explains.

Zero emissions11 emission排放。 transport

[11]ADB12=Asian Development Bank亞洲開發(fā)銀行，簡稱“亞行”，是亞洲、太平洋地區(qū)的區(qū)域性政府間國際金融機構(gòu)。is looking at including bicycles as part of a public transport network in some cities in Southeast Asia through bike-sharing schemes.Many cities around the world including Amsterdam, Copenhagen and Taipei have shown the successful integration of bike-sharing programmes in public transport systems.

[12]The bank plans to finance bikesharing projects in three Southeast Asian cities: Davao in Philippines,Vientiane in Laos and a yet to be determined city in Indonesia.

[13]YouBike13微笑單車，臺北市政府聯(lián)合臺灣捷安特公司推出的租賃用公共自行車服務(wù)。, the most popular bike-sharing scheme in Taiwan,China, which is being implemented in partnership with Taipei’s city government, proves that ef fi ciency can make a huge difference. Its operator,Giant14捷安特，中國臺灣的一個自行車品牌，全球自行車生產(chǎn)及行銷最具規(guī)模的公司之一。, attributes the success of the programme to the firm’s round-theclock15round-the-clock全天的；全天候的。management system, efficient data management and a customer service call center.

[14]In another form of bike-sharing,cycling has also become a solution to help poor students in rural communities access bicycles as a form of sustainable transport. Non-profit group16non-profit group運營目標不以獲取利潤為目的團體。Bike for the Philippines17菲律賓自行車項目協(xié)會。該協(xié)會通過為孩子提供自行車幫助他們建立自尊，改善在校表現(xiàn)；其宗旨為促進學習、改善健康和生活、保護清新空氣。are lending bicycles for free to help poor students in the country who still need to walk three kilometres to school because of lack of access to public transport or who have no ability to pay for its high costs.

Pedalling18 pedal用腳踏動；踩踏板。 for tourism

[15]Bike lanes are also essential to encourage a booming new industry that attracts tourists to Southeast Asian countries. United States-based tour operator Bicycle Adventures19騎車冒險旅行社，一家倡導(dǎo)自行車旅行的美國旅行社。, which launched a cycling tour this year in Taiwan, China, says a well-established cycling network creates an opportunity to increase tourism in the region.

[16]Taiwan’s commitment to cycling is very clear in the easy-to-access bike routes designed to showcase the island’s stunning20stunning令人震驚的。natural landscapes, including a 30-60 kilometre river bike path.

[17]Although many countries still do not have a similar established bike network, a growing number of tour operators worldwide are finding lucrative21lucrative獲利的。opportunities in providing privately guided cycling tours across Southeast Asia―from Hanoi in Vietnam to Luang Prabang in Laos; from Siem Reap in Cambodia to as far as the island of Koh Kood in the gulf of Thailand; or simply a trip from Singapore to Penang,Malaysia.

[18]United Kingdom-based Bamboo Travel22英國旅行社，提供自選旅游路線，旅游目的地包括中國、泰國、越南、柬埔寨、老撾等地。says their clients are increasingly interested in cycling tours when they plan their trips to Asia. “In the last few years we have seen demand for cycling excursions23excursion遠足；短途旅行。grow quickly. And we find a lot of our clients now request some time cycling in places where before they used to do sightseeing by car. Clients of all ages have become more health and environmentally conscious in recent years and cycling has grown as a result,”said Ewen Moore, sales director at Bamboo Travel. “It’s a fun and healthy way to do some sightseeing.” ■

在亞洲，不斷壯大的中產(chǎn)階級也許促進了私家車的增長，帶來了亞洲城市的交通堵塞和空氣污染，但是這種地位標志也許正逐漸被一種舊愛所取代——騎行。

[2]近年來，越來越多的亞洲人愿意騎上自行車呼吸新鮮空氣，享受更加環(huán)保、更多運動的生活，這是因為連續(xù)數(shù)小時坐在汽車里不動有害健康，高昂的燃油成本和維修費用也會使錢包越來越癟。

[3]皮尤研究中心的最新研究對44個國家和地區(qū)的車輛擁有量展開了調(diào)查。研究表明，世界各地的家庭擁有的自行車多過摩托車和汽車。日本和泰國在汽車擁有量的排名中位居前列，其中日本約81%的人擁有至少一輛車，泰國為51%，但是在全球自行車擁有量的排名中，日本和泰國仍然分別位居第二和第三。

[4]皮尤調(diào)查顯示，雖然中國私家車的數(shù)量不斷增長，但也只有17%的家庭擁有汽車，而65%的家庭有自行車。而且，中國的共享單車項目在數(shù)量上引領(lǐng)全球，大約有170個共享單車系統(tǒng)在中國運行。

[5]在東南亞，新加坡高效的公交系統(tǒng)聞名天下，卻還沒有形成將騎行作為一種交通方式的文化氛圍。但是現(xiàn)在，新加坡已成為熱衷于改變這一形勢的國家之一。作為全國騎行計劃的部分內(nèi)容，新加坡正投資4300萬新加坡元（約2.1億元人民幣）建設(shè)自行車道及騎行設(shè)施。

[6]與此同時，皮尤研究還顯示，泰國74%的居民擁有自行車。該國政府承諾將首都曼谷的自行車道延長10公里，將目前232公里長的自行車道擴展至沒有騎行道路的其他地區(qū)。

[7]日本78%的家庭擁有自行車，在全球自行車擁有量中排名第二，僅次于德國。

絆腳石

[8]馬尼拉都會區(qū)奎松市的居民庫·馬納漢是一名職業(yè)攝影師，每天騎行42公里上下班，如今已堅持三年。他認為自行車道的建設(shè)對于像他這樣的自行車族非常有益，因為與駕車族同道行駛已經(jīng)產(chǎn)生一些問題，后者常常無視自行車族，威脅他們的生命安全。

[9]他告訴《生態(tài)商業(yè)》雜志：“污染也是一個大問題。因為在進行有氧運動時，通常我們會大口呼吸，吸入更多的污染物，從而導(dǎo)致呼吸道問題。自行車道盡管離汽車交通只有幾英尺遠，但卻會大大減少我們吸入的污染物?！?/p>

[10]馬納漢解釋道，對公司而言，建設(shè)自行車?？奎c、淋浴間和更衣室會幫助鼓勵員工騎車上班。

零排放交通工具

[11]通過共享單車計劃，亞洲開發(fā)銀行正準備將共享單車項目納入到東南亞部分城市的公交網(wǎng)絡(luò)之中。世界上很多城市，包括阿姆斯特丹、哥本哈根以及臺北，都已經(jīng)向世人展示了共享單車項目與公交系統(tǒng)的成功融合。

[12]亞洲開發(fā)銀行計劃資助東南亞三個城市的共享單車項目：菲律賓的達沃、老撾的萬象以及目前尚未確定的一個印度尼西亞的城市。

[13]與臺北市政府合作推行的微笑單車是中國臺灣最流行的共享單車計劃，該計劃證明效率的作用巨大。其運營商捷安特將這一項目的成功歸結(jié)于公司的24小時管理系統(tǒng)、高效的數(shù)據(jù)管理以及客戶服務(wù)熱線中心。

[14]共享單車也幫助了農(nóng)村社區(qū)的貧困學生，讓他們有機會用上自行車這種可持續(xù)交通工具。非營利團體菲律賓自行車項目協(xié)會為該國的貧困學生提供免費租借自行車的服務(wù)，由于缺乏公共交通或負擔不起其高昂費用，這些學生現(xiàn)在仍需步行3公里去上學。

騎行旅游業(yè)

[15]自行車道對于促進新興產(chǎn)業(yè)的發(fā)展也十分重要，這一產(chǎn)業(yè)可以吸引游客到東南亞旅游。總部位于美國的騎行冒險旅行社今年在中國臺灣推出了騎行旅游項目，并聲稱業(yè)已完善的騎行網(wǎng)絡(luò)為發(fā)展該地區(qū)的旅游業(yè)提供了機遇。

[16]為展現(xiàn)絕美的自然風光，臺灣專門開發(fā)了便利的騎行路線，包括一段30—60公里的沿河騎行路線，這清楚地表明臺灣在騎行方面做出的努力。

[17]盡管很多國家還沒有類似成型的自行車網(wǎng)絡(luò)，但是世界上越來越多的旅行社正提供配備私人導(dǎo)游的跨東南亞騎行旅游項目，借此贏利，該路段包括從越南的河內(nèi)到老撾的瑯勃拉邦、從柬埔寨的吳哥窟一直遠到泰國灣的狗骨島，或者就從新加坡到馬來西亞的檳城。

[18]總部位于英國的竹子旅行社稱，他們的客戶在計劃亞洲行時，對騎行旅游越來越感興趣?！敖鼛啄辏覀儼l(fā)現(xiàn)騎行遠游的需求增長迅猛，很多客戶要求在原來開車觀光的地帶騎行一段時間。近年來，各年齡段的客戶越來越注重健康和環(huán)保，于是騎行便流行起來。”該旅行社的銷售總監(jiān)尤恩·穆爾說，“騎行很受歡迎，是一種健康又有趣的觀光旅游方式?！?□

騎行在亞洲：開辟可持續(xù)發(fā)展新道路

ByMedilyn Manibo

1 sustainability可持續(xù)性。

（譯者單位：北京航空航天大學外國語學院）