60 Business Spotlight 6/2019 LANGUAGE
Fotos: i _ultraforma_/iStock.com; Gert KrautbauerOyster cards
Sabine: Hi, Jack. I’m calling for some advice about
my trip to London. I’ll be in town for a week
and will be visiting lots of different places.
Should I use cabs or public transport?
Jack: I use public transport in the centre. Why
not buy an Oyster card when you get here?
Sabine: What’s that?
Ja c k : It’s a plastic card that costs a fiver, which you
can top up with credit.
Sabine: Is that cheaper than buying tickets for each
journey?
Jack: Absolutely. And you can use them on every
form of public transport in London. On the
Tube, you just touch the card on the yellow
card reader at the gates when you start and
end your journey. On the buses, you just
touch it when you get on.
Sabine: That sounds easy. Where can I get one?
Jack: Lots of places. You can buy them at station
ticket offices and ticket machines. Or you
can get them in local shops and newsagents
that have the Oyster sign in their window.Going by bus
Sabine: Mary, what’s the best way to get to London
Bridge from here?
Mary: I’d take the bus. The numbers 48 and 49 go
there from the stop across the road.
Sabine: How long will that take?
Mary: It depends on the traffic, but about a half an
hour.Sabine: I do like travelling on London buses. We
don’t have double-deckers where I live.
Mary: If you go upstairs and get a front seat, you’ll
have a great view!
Sabine: How do you know when it’s your stop?
Mary: There are announcements and screens on
most buses, except the old Routemasters.
On those, you just press the bell on the
handrail when you want to get off.
Sabine: What are Routemasters?
Mary: Old double-deckers that you get on through
an opening at the back. They have a conduc-
tor. But there are only a few of them run-
ning now.The Underground
Sabine: I’ve got to get to White City. Is the Under-
ground the best way to get there?
John: Definitely. Take the Tube from Holborn.
Sabine: Why do you call the Underground “the
Tube”?
John: It’s a nickname from Victorian times.
Sabine: I suppose the tunnels are a kind of tube.
When was the first Underground built?
John: I think it was in the 1860s. I know from
a pub quiz that the first line was what we
now know as the Metropolitan Line.Riverboats
Sabine: Is it easy to get to Greenwich from here?
Colin: You could get a train from Charing Cross,
but if you want an experience, I’d go by
Thames Clipper. You get a great trip down the
river and it takes only about 40 minutes.
Sabine: That sounds great. Where do I get on?
Colin: Westminster Pier is the closest from here.
You can use your Oyster card, too. There
are six or seven stops, at places like Canary
Wharf and Surrey Quays.
Sabine: That sounds perfect.
Colin: Look up “river bus” online and you’ll see all
the routes and timetables.
Sabine: Do people also use the riverboats for com-
muting?
Colin: They certainly do. I’d love to, but I live out-
side town, so it’s the train and Tube for me.cab [kæb]
, Taxi
clipper [ˈklɪpə]
, Klipper (Segelschiff)
commute
[kəˈmjuːt] , pendeln;
hier auch: unterwegs sein
conductor
[kənˈdʌktə] UK
, Schaffner(in)
fiver [ˈfaɪvə] UK ifml.
, 5-Pfund-Note
get on [)get (ɒn]
, einsteigen
Greenwich [(ɡrenɪtʃ]
, [wg. Aussprache]
handrail [ˈhændreɪl]
, Geländer;
hier: Haltestange
newsagent
[ˈnjuːzˌeɪdʒənt] UK
, Zeitschriftenladen, Kiosk
nickname [ˈnɪkneɪm]
, Spitzname
oyster [(OIstE]
, Auster
pier [pɪə]
, Kai, Landungssteg
quay [kiː]
, (Hafen-)Kai
reader [ˈriːdə]
, Lesegerät
route [ruːt]
, hier: Linie, Fährstrecke
Thames [temz]
, Themse
timetable
[ˈtaɪmˌteɪb&l]
, Fahrplan
top sth. up (with credit)
[)tɒp (ʌp] UK
, etw. (mit einem
Guthaben) aufladen
Tube: the ~
[tjuːb] UK
, U-Bahn (in London)
(tube , Röhre)
wharf [wɔːf]
, Anlegeplatz, KaiOn the Tube:
typical London
commuteKEN TAYLOR
is a communication
consultant and
author of 50 Ways
to Improve Your
Business English
(Summertown).
Contact:
KTaylor868@aol.
comLANGUAGE
ENGLISH ON THE MOVECommuting in London
Sind Sie in London unterwegs, haben Sie mehrere Transportmittel
zur Auswahl. Lesen Sie hier, welche die Londoner bevorzugen.
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