日本推出世界首輛'雙模車(chē)'

Japan recently unveiled the world’s first Dual-Mode Vehicle (DMV), a contraption that runs both on roads, like a bus, and on rails, like a train.

日本近日推出了世界第一輛"雙模車(chē)"，這種車(chē)既可以像公共汽車(chē)一樣在馬路上行駛，也可以像火車(chē)一樣在鐵軌上行駛。

The unique bus-train hybrid was unveiled last month, in the town of Kaiyo, in Japan’s Tokushima Prefecture.
這種巴士火車(chē)"二合一"的獨(dú)特交通工具上個(gè)月在日本德島縣海陽(yáng)鎮(zhèn)亮相。

The mini-bus-like contraption didn’t win anyone over with its looks, but it definitely made an impression in terms of practicality.
它的外觀不太討人喜歡，類(lèi)似于小巴車(chē)，但是在實(shí)用性方面絕對(duì)讓人印象深刻。

It runs with normal rubber tires on the road, but when it needs to switch to train mode, a pair of metal wheels drop down from the vehicle’s underbelly. The front tires are lifted off of the track, while the rear wheels stay down to propel the vehicle.
在馬路上行駛時(shí)，它使用正常的輪胎，但是如果需要切換成火車(chē)模式，底盤(pán)上就會(huì)降下一對(duì)金屬輪，并收起前輪胎，使其離開(kāi)軌道，后輪胎則會(huì)保持在原來(lái)的位置來(lái)驅(qū)動(dòng)車(chē)輛前進(jìn)。

Switching between road and train modes takes only about 15 seconds.
在馬路和鐵軌兩種模式之間切換僅需要15秒。

The vehicle has been in the works for over a decade, and authorities in Tokushima hope that it will not only improve the lives of locals but also attract tourists curious to see the dual-mode vehicles in person.
雙模車(chē)的研制過(guò)程長(zhǎng)達(dá)十余年，德島縣政府希望它不但能改善當(dāng)?shù)厝说纳?，還能吸引好奇的游客親自來(lái)看看這輛雙模車(chē)。

The dual-mode vehicles, which come in a variety of colors, are diesel-powered, can carry up to 21 passengers and run at a speed of 60 km/h in train mode, and up to 100 km/h as a bus.
這種雙模車(chē)是由柴油驅(qū)動(dòng)的，最多能搭載21名乘客，有多種顏色。開(kāi)啟火車(chē)模式后時(shí)速為60千米，開(kāi)啟巴士模式后時(shí)速為100千米。