Your Next Taxi Has No Driver
Welcome back to "Learn English with Podcasts"! Sarah, quick question. What feels scarier to you - driving in heavy traffic, or riding in a car with no driver at all?欢迎回到"Learn English with Podcasts"！Sarah，问个问题。对你来说哪个更可怕——在堵车中开车，还是坐一辆没有司机的车？
Heavy traffic makes me nervous, sure. But no driver? That is a whole different level of strange. Why do you ask? Is there a driverless cab waiting outside?堵车确实让我紧张。但没司机？那完全是另一种奇怪。你为什么这么问？难道外面停着一辆无人驾驶出租车？
Not outside - but maybe soon. A Chinese ride-hailing company called CaoCao signed a deal with the city of Zhuhai. They want to build a "sky-ground-air" smart transport system. And yes, that includes flying cars.不在外面——但快了。一家叫曹操出行的中国网约车公司和珠海签了合作协议。他们想建一个"天地空"一体化智慧出行系统。没错，里面还真有飞行汽车。
Wait, wait, flying cars? I thought those only existed in sci-fi movies. Let's slow down. Start with the ordinary cars first, please.等等等等，飞行汽车？我以为那只存在于科幻电影里。咱们慢点来，先从普通的汽车讲起，拜托了。
Fair enough. The plan has three parts. First, self-driving cars will begin trial runs on certain roads in Zhuhai. Second, they will build smart stations where robot taxis can swap a tired battery for a full one in minutes. Third, they will leave landing space for flying vehicles later.有道理。这个计划分三部分。第一，自动驾驶汽车会在珠海的一些路段开始试运行。第二，他们要建智能站点，无人出租车可以在几分钟内把没电的电池换成满电的。第三，他们会为飞行汽车预留起降空间。
Let's focus on the ground part first, then. How does a robot taxi actually "see" and drive without any person up front?那我们先聚焦地上这部分吧。一辆无人出租车是怎么"看见"并自己开的，前面又没人？
Great question. Think of it this way. The car wears sensors, like radar and cameras. Together they build a live 3D picture of the road, the cars, and the people around it. The car is always watching and always deciding, step by step.好问题。你可以这么想：这辆车戴着传感器，比如雷达和摄像头。它们一起绘制出一幅实时的三维画面，包括路面、周围的车和行人。这辆车一直在观察、一直在做判断，一步接一步。
So the wheel just turns itself? But what happens if a sensor breaks, or the road is covered in fog and rain?所以方向盘全是自己转的？但如果某个传感器坏了，或者路上又是雾又是雨，那怎么办？
That's what the test roads in Zhuhai are for. Cars run thousands of kilometers in real traffic. And the stations are not just battery places. They also do checks and offer remote help. If something goes wrong, the system stops the car safely or calls for support.这正是它在珠海试运行的目的。车会在真实的车流里跑几千公里。而这些站点不只是换电池的地方，它们还会做检查、提供远程支援。万一出了状况，系统会让车安全停下，或者呼叫支援。
Okay, so this doesn't sound like it happens next week. If the ground part is still far away, the flying part must be even further off.好吧，这听起来不像下周就能实现。地面部分都还这么远，空中部分岂不是更远。
Actually, that is exactly why they start now. CaoCao has run one of China's biggest taxi networks for eleven years. They already know a lot about maintenance, scheduling, and safe operation at scale. So they bring that know-how to Zhuhai, and they leave the sky a space to grow into.其实，现在动手恰恰是因为那一步还远。曹操出行经营中国最大的网约车网络之一已经有十一年了。他们已经积累了丰富的维护、调度和大规模安全运营经验。所以他们把这些经验带到珠海，同时为空中那部分预留成长空间。
So that's the real "smart transport" - not one magic flying machine, but every layer: the battery, the roads, the stations, the air space. All planned together.所以真正的"智慧出行"不是一辆会飞的魔法汽车，而是每一层：电池、道路、站点、空域，全都一起规划。
Exactly! Picture this. In the future, one trip could have two parts. First, a robot taxi takes you to a station. Then a low-altitude aircraft carries you over the bay to the airport. Ground and air working as one smooth route.正是！你想象一下。未来，一次出行可以分两段：先是一辆无人出租车把你送到枢纽站，然后一架低空飞行器载你飞越海湾，直达机场。地面和空中连成一条顺畅的路线。
Wow, that sounds like a dream holiday. But knowing you, Mike, you are going to say there is a catch. What is it?哇，听起来像梦想中的假期。但以我对你的了解，Mike，你最后总会说"但有个问题"。是什么？
You know me too well. The whole thing is still a pilot. The flying part has no date yet. And a machine has to earn people's trust before it becomes normal. Self-driving is not about driving well on a good day. It's about being steady every single day.你太了解我了。整个项目目前还只是试点。空中那部分还没有具体日期。而且，一台机器在变成平常事物之前，必须赢得人们的信任。自动驾驶的关键不是它好天气里开得好，而是它每天都很稳。
Steady every day and earn trust. I like that. So, final question. If a driverless taxi came to pick you up tomorrow, would you get in?每天都很稳，还要赢得信任。我喜欢这个说法。那最后一个问题。如果明天一辆无人出租车来接你，你会上车吗？
The first time I see one in real life, I'll hold the door open and say - nice driving, driver! But only after I check who is driving.当我第一次在现实里看到它，我会拉开车门说一句——开得真稳，司机师傅！但前提是，我得先看看是谁在"开"它。
Ha, the empty seat. You would make the worst salesman for driverless taxis.哈哈，就是那个空座位吧。你绝对是无人出租车最差劲的推销员。
Our time is almost up! If today's talk made you smile and opened up a little window to the future, then the episode did its job.今天的时间快到了！如果这段对话让你笑了，还让你对未来的出行有了更多想象，那这期就成功了。
Thanks for listening to "Learn English with Podcasts"! Next time, look up - maybe a flying taxi will pass by. See you then!感谢收听"Learn English with Podcasts"！下次记得抬头看看——也许一辆飞行出租车正从头顶飞过。下期见！