Reading. Too much traffic! (Elem)

Too much traffic!

Do you think there is too much traffic on the roads? Read about one of the worst traffic problems in history, and the next time you are in really bad traffic, remember that it might be worse! In August 2010, hundreds of people spent eleven days in their cars on China’s National Highway 110. They had to drive really slowly, and had to keep stopping all the time, so they moved only one kilometre every day. Many drivers had to eat, sleep and wash inside their cars. A small number of local people came out to help, bringing water and medicine, but there were also many other people who wanted to make money from the situation. Many street sellers brought food and water and sold it to drivers, and some people started small cafés next to the road. Drivers got out of their car for a coffee and something warm to eat at the cafés. Often the food for sale was really expensive but the drivers had to pay. So, why did it happen? Natural disasters – snow storms or heavy rain storms, for example – have caused many of the world’s worst traffic problems, but that wasn’t why the problem on National Highway 110 began. The problem started because people were working on the road, and many drivers had to slow down or stop. It was a really busy time of day so the queue got longer and longer until nobody was moving, and, after the problem started, there were some small accidents. These made the problem worse.

After the traffic problem ended, the Chinese government decided to make changes. They didn’t want to have problems again in the future. They didn’t want to stop cars travelling on the road, but they made larger vehicles go on different roads, and they stopped people from working on roads at very busy times. This has helped a lot. Today, National Highway 110 is busier and more crowded than ever before, but drivers haven’t experienced the traffic problem of August 2010 again.