中英對照讀新聞》Riders Are Abandoning Buses and Trains. That’s a Problem for Climate Change 乘客不再繼續搭巴士與火車 這對氣候變遷是一大問題

◎張沛元

A year into the coronavirus pandemic, public transit is hanging by a thread in many cities around the world. Riders remain at home or they remain fearful of boarding buses and trains. And without their fares, public transit revenues have fallen off a cliff. In some places, service has been cut. In others, fares have gone up and transit workers are facing the prospect of layoffs.

新冠病毒大流行1年來，全球各地許多城市的大眾運輸正岌岌可危。乘客滯留家中，或依然畏懼搭巴士與火車。少了乘客支付的車資，大眾運輸營收暴跌。某些地方的（大眾運輸）服務被砍，其他地方則是車資上漲，運輸業員工恐遭資遣。

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That’s a disaster for the world’s ability to address that other global crisis：climate change. Public transit offers a relatively simple way for cities to lower their greenhouse gas emissions, not to mention a way to improve air quality, noise and congestion.

這對世界解決另一大全球危機—氣候變遷—的能力而言，是一大災難。公共運輸提供各大城市相對簡單的降低溫室氣體排放的辦法，遑論（這也是）改善空氣品質、噪音與交通壅塞之道。

新聞辭典

hang by a thread：慣用語，字面意義為用一條線吊著，形容情況危急、千鈞一髮、岌岌可危。例句：The minister’s political career has been hanging by a thread since sexual harassment scandals.（部長的政治生涯自性騷擾醜聞後便岌岌可危。）

fall off a cliff：慣用語，字面意義為跌落懸崖，形容突然與快速減少或暴跌、暴落。例句：The global economy fell off a cliff during the coronavirus lockdown.（全球經濟在新冠病毒所導致的封鎖期間重挫。）

not to mention：慣用語，更不用說、更何況、遑論。