With 10, 600 bicycles in circulation，Paris city officials are hoping the program will provide people with more environmentally friendly transportation．
It seems both Parisians and tourists are taking advantage of the program．Since its launch a little over two weeks ago，Vélib has already seen almost half a million rentals．And，with the addition of 10，000 more bikes and 700 more stations in the next 12 months，city officials expect at least 200，000 regular users by year end．
Parisian Olivier Bioret has already gone for a spin on one of Vélib’s vehicles and plans to make use of them more often．
“It’s a real pleasure—when，like me，you don’t have space enough in your flat to have your
own bike—to be able to discover．to cross Paris and not have to take the subway，”he said．
As a socialist and longtime green activist，Mayor Bertrand Delanoe regards Vélib as just a part of his plan to reduce car traffic and，thus，lower pollution by 2020．
Apart from its environmental benefits，Vélib is also being praised as a way of collecting money for the city，for all the money from rentals goes to the city government．
Paris is not alone in its attempt to profit from the power of the bicycles．
Across the globe，cities such as Barcelona，which stated its bike-share program in March with 1,500 vehicles and 100 stations，and New York，which launched a five-day trial program last month，are using bicycles as a way to cut back on both traffic and pollution．
However，it remains to be seen whether people’s acceptance of these programs is simply a
passing fashion or whether this movement has the power to take root and transform the face of public transportation around the world．
小题1:The real purpose of Vélib is________．
A．to help people save money and space
B．to make some money for the city government
C．to provide convenience to both Parisians and tourists
D．to reduce traffic and pollution in the city小题2:Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A．There will be 700 stations in one year’s time．
B．There will be over 20, 000 bikes in use in a year．
C．In the first two weeks there were nearly a million rentals．
D．There will be 200, 000 regular rentals each day by year end．小题3:We can know from the passage that_________．
A．other cities also have such programs
B．Parisians can use the bicycles free of charge
C．Paris sets an example to many other cities
D．Paris is the first city to start such a program小题4:As to the future of the program，the author is_________．
A．critical
B．optimistic
C．uncertain
D．negative
