Question

Suppose you don't need your car today.And suppose，as it happens that a stranger in your area does need a car.Would you be willing to rent yours out?

Several car­sharing start­ups，including Getaround，RelayRides and JustSharelt，are eager to connect car owners with renters this way.The companies have different rules，but participating owners receive，generally speaking，about two­thirds of the rental earnings.RelayRides says an owner of a mid­size，late­model sedan who rents out a car for 10 hours a week could expect to clear about $ 3,000 a year.

Peer­to­peer car­sharing remains in the trial stage；it can be found in San Francisco and a few other places.It has a long way to go before it becomes the auto equivalent of Airbnb，the  surprise success story for peer­to­peer sharing of space in apartments and houses.

Shelby Clark，founder of RelayRides，says potential investors in his company have been concerned that owners will be afraid to hand their car over to strangers.To address that，he points to Airbnb，saying，“Letting people sleep in your living room is much more of a disturbance into your personal space than letting someone use your car.”

All of these companies offer their own insurance coverage for their renters，which are supposed to put owners' minds at ease.But only two states—California and Oregon—have passed  laws to clarify that an owner will not suffer any consequences should a car­sharing renter have an accident.

“In all the other states，legal ambiguity remains，” Shelby Clark says.“If a renter should be involved in a serious accident in those states，the victim can be expected to go after every party possible，including the car's owner.”

Also to remove the worries of car owners，the driving records of renters are checked for recent serious violations..

1.What does the underlined word “sedan” in Paragraph 2 probably refer to?

A．A kind of car.

B．An owner of a car.

C．A renting company.

D．A car­sharing renter.

2.Which of the following is true of Aribnb?

A．It cares little about personal privacy.

B．It deals with house­sharing successfully.

C．It is a very popular car­sharing company.

D．Its ideas are being tried out in some states.

3.If a car­sharing renter should have an accident in California，the car's owner ________.

A．has to take legal responsibility

B．will not suffer the consequence

C．is not covered by health insurance

D．must pay the insurance for the renter

4.According to the text，more car­owners will participate in the service，if ________.

A．legal ambiguity is clarified in all the states

B．renters are warned not to violate traffic rules

C．more money is given to participating owners

D．people are aware of the importance of sharing

5.It can be learned from the text that car­sharing ________.

A．makes no profit

B．remains in popularity

C．is against the state law

D．is a new business model

Answer

1.D

2.A

3.B

4.A

5.D

【解析】本文主要介绍了现在美国兴起的一个共同使用小汽车的新兴行业。

1.

2.2】 推理判断题。根据文章第三段中的“before it becomes the auto equivalent of Airbnb，the surprise success story for peer­to­peer sharing of space in apartments and houses”可知，Airbnb是一家成功进行房屋共享的公司，故答案为B项。

3.3】 细节理解题。根据文章第五段中的“But only two states—California and Oregon—have passed laws to clarify that an owner will not suffer any consequences should a car­sharing renter have an accident.”可知，在California和Oregon两个州，如果租用者出了事故，车主是不会受到任何影响的，故答案为B项。

4.4】 推理判断题。根据第六段的内容可知，现在在美国的许多州，法律在关于共同使用小汽车这一点的规定上还是很模糊的，所以影响了这个行业的发展，如果把这些法律上模糊的情况明晰化的话，越来越多的车主将会参加这个活动。

5.5】 推理判断题。通读全文可知，共同使用小汽车是一个新兴的行业。