The dos and don'ts of the UK commute
英国人通勤时的行为准则
The average worldwide commute is around 40 minutes. But UK workers are travelling 54 minutes and Londoners commute approximately 80 minutes by car and over two hours by train every day, according to the UK Department of Transport. Drawing on all that travelling experience, what can these commuters teach us about how best to behave during all that time spent in cars, trains, and buses?
全球平均通勤时间约为40分钟。但英国交通部的数据显示，英国上班族每天的通勤时间为54分钟，而伦敦人每天的汽车通勤时间约为80分钟，火车通勤时间超过两个小时。基于此，这些通勤者能教给我们如何最好地度过在汽车、火车和公共汽车上的所有时间吗？
First of all, travel etiquette is important. A recent BBC article asked its readers to describe which of their fellow commuters' actions constituted bad manners. Top answers included taking too loudly, eating stinky food and putting feet up on the seats. Several respondents even mentioned a fellow train passenger clipping their toenails in the carriage. Their reactions on this boorish behaviour included feeling disgusted, perplexed and appalled.
首先，旅行礼仪很重要。英国广播公司(BBC)最近的一篇文章要求读者描述身边同事的不礼貌行为。最多见的答复包括声音太大、吃了臭味食物以及把脚放在座位上。几位受访者甚至提到了一位在火车上剪脚趾甲的乘客。他们对这种粗野行为的反应包括感到恶心、困惑和震惊。
A more controversial activity is doing make-up. Opinions varied on whether this was impolite or inconsiderate. One reader said he was so offended by this conduct, he had to change carriages. However, the idea that make-up should be applied in private is an outdated concept, says professional make-up artist Nic Chapman and one half of beauty brand, Pixiwoo. "We are not ashamed of wearing make-up," she told the BBC. Dilruba Khanom told the BBC "I do admire a woman's confidence to not give two hoots and slap on the face."
更有争议的做法是化妆。对于这样做是不礼貌还是不体谅他人，人们的意见不一。一位读者说，他对这种行为感到非常生气，不得不换了几节车厢。然而，专业化妆师尼克·查普曼和一半的美容品牌Pixiwoo表示，应该在私人场合化妆的想法已经过时了。“我们并不为化妆感到羞耻，”她告诉BBC。迪尔鲁巴·哈诺姆在接受BBC采访时表示：“我真的很佩服女性能旁若无人地化妆。”
But a long commute isn't just about negative experiences. Many UK commuters turned to innovative activities to better make use of their time on transport. 37-year-old Ben Yallop, who manages international judicial relations at the Royal Courts of Justice, used his daily three-hour trip to write and self-publish two novels. He started "jotting down ideas" for a series of them. "I've done almost all my research, plotting and writing on the train," he tells the BBC. Alternatively, 24-year-old Amy Dickett uses her 90-minute trip to photograph fellow commuters for her Commute Blog. She snaps a picture and asks them to tell her something surprising about themselves. "Usually they are surprised but glad to have some entertainment on an otherwise boring journey. Often the people around us join in and will ask their own questions," she told the BBC.
但长途通勤带来的并不仅仅是负面体验。为了更好地利用他们在交通上的时间，许多英国通勤者转向了创新活动。37岁的本·亚洛普在英国皇家法院国际司法关系的负责人，他利用每天通勤的三个小时编写并出版了两部小说。他开始记录“写下”一系列想法。“我几乎做了所有的研究，在火车上策划和写作，”他告诉BBC。另外，24岁的艾米·迪克特每天通勤花90分钟，她利用这段时间为同行的路人拍照并发表在自己的通勤博客上。她拍下一张照片，让主人公告诉自己一些关于他们自己的令人惊讶的事情。“通常情况下，他们会感到惊讶，但也很高兴在原本枯燥的旅途中得到一些娱乐。旁边的人也经常会加入进来，并提出自己的问题，”她告诉BBC。
So, no matter where or how long your journey is, take a leaf from the UK commuter's book. Don't antagonise your fellow passengers and rather than staring into space - use your time creatively.
所以，无论你去往何处，花费多长时间，都可以向英国上班族学习。不要与同行的人作对，与其盯着天空发呆，不如创造性地利用你的时间。
词汇表
etiquette
礼仪、礼节
bad manners
不礼貌，不文明
clip
（用指甲刀）剪
toenail
脚趾甲
boorish
粗鲁的
disgusted
厌恶的，恶心的
perplexed
困惑的
appalled
目瞪口呆的
impolite
无礼的
inconsiderate
不考虑他人的
conduct
行为
ashamed
羞耻的
not give two hoots
完全不在乎
slap on the face
化妆
self-publish
自费出版
jot down ideas
随手记下想法
blog
博客
snap a picture
拍一张照片
antagonise
引起…的反感