The Future of Public Transport

Pre discussion questions

What kinds of transport will be popular in the future?

What do you not like about public transport now?

South Korea wants to create a super-fast train that will be able to carry passengers at almost the speed of sound. (the speed of sound is 1225 km/h)

They hope that the mode of transport will be able to travel more than 997 km/h. This would drastically reduce travel times in Korea.

The train would be inside a 'low-pressure tube.’ If it is successful it could travel along at twice the speed of other high-speed trains. At this time, the fastest in the world is capable of 431km/h.

The Korea Railroad Research Institute said that they hope to make an ultra-fast train. A train that will travel inside a state-of-the-art low-pressure tube at lightning speeds, in the near future.”

"…, we will cooperate with institutes as well as Hanyang University to check the viability of similar technologies called the hyper-tube format over the next three years."

Another system is Hyperloop.  Hyperloop is a long tube that has had the air removed to create a vacuum.

A company called Hyperloop One in Los Angeles has started making a transport system that could potentially become the world's first Hyperloop transport system.

One of these transport systems has already been made and is working in a desert in North Las Vegas. And some places such as Dubai are interested in Hyperloop for their country.

So keep an eye out for the future of world transport.

Try to guess the meaning of the words in bold and match them with their closest meaning from the choices in the right. Some of the answers are very close and have similar meaning. The meaning of these words is how they are used in the reading. Some of these words have different meanings in the dictionary depending on how they are used.

 The answers are below the table.

A=4, B=1, C=8, D=2, E=7, F=3, G=6, H=5

Some example sentences using the new words or phrases from the meaning of how they are used in the reading to help you understand better.

1.      The best mode of transport to get around Seoul is the subway.

2.      The doctor told her that she drastically needed to lose weight or she could have a heart attack.

3.      She is a smart student and capable of passing the test.

4.      The new smart phone will be state-of-the-art technology.

5.      It is not viable to spend money on this business idea because you will lose it all.

6.      A Porsche 911 has the potential to go more than 250 km/h.

7.      He said that the rides as Disneyworld were ultra fun.

8.      Could you keep an eye out for Mr Lee. We can’t find him.

Some questions using the new words/phrases. Try to use the words/phrases in your answer.

1.      What do you think of these future modes of transport?

2.      Do you think these future transports will have a drastic effect on air travel?

3.      What other state-of-the-art transport do you think we will see in the future?

4.      What do you think a country needs to make this expensive transport viable?

5.      Potentially, what do you think this would do for the future of transport in Korea?

6.      How do you feel about traveling ultra fast in a tube like in the story?

7.      Are there other technologies we should keep an eye out for?

8.      What is something that you are capable of doing?