An airline says it will offer baby-free "quiet zones" on its flights. Should all planes and trains follow suit, or do adults need to learn to live with child passengers? 一家航空公司声称将为航班开辟一块没有带婴儿的乘客的“安静区”其它航班和列车应该效仿,还是乘客需要学会宽容?
At 35,000ft, the klaxon-like howl of a distressed toddler screeches through a pressurised cabin. 在35,000英尺的高空,一阵如电喇叭般刺耳的婴儿哭嚎,在原本压抑的机舱内肆虐。 For travellers already stressed by lengthy security checks, crammed into cramped seating and unnerved by the very fact of being so high above ground, it’s almost enough to make them shatter the Plexiglas windows and jump. 对于已经被冗长的安监折磨的疲惫不堪,拖着有气无力的身躯挤进狭窄的座位,且远离地面无处可逃的乘客而言,这样的声音足以让他们抓狂到砸破窗户一跃而出。 And it’s a source of anxiety for the embarrassed parents, too, desperately trying to pacify their wailing offspring while facing disapproving stares from fellow adults. 这也让带小孩的家长尴尬万分,一边要哄着哭闹的小孩儿,一边还要忍受乘客那哀怨的目光。 One airline is offering what it says is a solution. Budget carrier Air Asia says from February it will provide a "quiet zone" for passengers aged 12 and over at no extra cost. 一家航空公司提出了一套“解决方案”。以廉价为招牌的亚航称,从二月起,将免费为乘客开辟一片只接受12岁及以上年龄乘客的“安静区”。 Separated from the rest of the cabin by toilets and bulkheads, these seven rows of economy class seats should be immune from the sound of infant tantrums, the company claims. 航空公司声称,经济舱中将有7排座位设置独立的洗手间并由舱板隔开,这一区域完全不会受到婴儿哭叫声的干扰。 It is following the example of Malaysia Airlines, which in April announced it would limit families with children sitting on the upper deck of its Kuala Lumpur to London service. 此举是效仿了马来西亚航空公司的措施。早在四月份,马来航空将在吉隆坡飞伦敦的航班上限制头等舱带小孩儿乘客的数量。 For the childless and the easily irritable, it may be a blessed relief. 对于没有孩子以及脾气暴躁的乘客,这无疑是一个福音。 Equally, many parents will surely be disgruntled at the suggestion they should be segregated from other passengers like second-class citizens. 同时,带小孩的乘客对此表示不满,为何自己就像次等公民一样与别的乘客分开? But others accustomed to getting around with offspring in tow can see the point. 但是经常带小孩出行的乘客对此有特别的看法。 Cathy Winston, 35, who runs the MummyTravels blog about her journeys with her 10-week-old daughter, is planning to fly both of them to the Spanish island of Lanzarote in November.
凯西•;温斯顿,35岁,在她的“MummyTravels”博客中写道,她将与10周大的女儿于11月份一同飞往西班牙兰萨罗特岛 She is determined that her love of travelling should not be curtailed. But she believes a dedicated family compartment would at least mean she wouldn’t have to worry about reproachful looks.
她对旅行的喜爱是无法阻挡的,但是她也理解,至少在一块儿独立的区域,你不用去看别人抱怨的脸色。
"I know from before I had my daughter what it’s like when you’re trying to get some sleep and there’s a baby crying," she says. “之前我带过我女儿,我知道那种在你想要睡觉的时候听到婴儿的哭声是什么感觉。”
Certainly, there appears to be support for segregation. In April, a survey of 1,666 British adults by Jetcost.co.uk found that 53% supported child-free flights. 当然,对这一分区措施很多人表示支持。四月份,Jetcost.co.uk的一项调查结果显示,1666名受访者中有53%支持“无婴儿区”。 A poll by Tripadvisor in August found that over a third of Britons would be prepared to pay extra to travel by air without the presence of children. 八月份,Tripadvisor的民意调查显示,有过三分之一的英国人甚至可以接受多付费以享受无噪音的飞行。 But although airlines could presumably charge a healthy premium for the privilege of no-infant compartments, there might be logistical difficulties. 虽然航空公司可以适当多收费以提供“无婴儿区”,但是任然有实际困难。 In smaller aircraft, with different layouts to those used by Air Asia and Malaysia Airlines, screening off the sound of crying children will not always be practical. Adult-only flights would mean reducing the number of available customers, and thus have a negative impact on profitability. 在小型客机上,机舱格局很难适应亚航和马来西亚航空的分区格局,因此,要隔出“安静区”是不切实际的。不接受婴儿就意味着顾客数量减少,这也对航空公司的盈利带来负面影响。 And perhaps most importantly, introducing segregation would risk infuriating families who resent the idea they should be treated as second-class citizens. 当然最重要的是,分区措施可能会激怒带小孩的乘客,他们会产生一种被看作“次等公民”感觉。 After all, there are no separate schedules or compartments for adults who impinge on the peace and quiet of others by snoring, for instance, or taking off their shoes to unleash malodorous feet. 毕竟,飞机上没有考虑把打鼾的人分开的措施;还有那些有香港脚的脱鞋的乘客也没有被分隔开来。 Arguably, part of the deal when travelling in economy class or on low-cost carriers is that you have to put up with other people’s irritating habits in extremely close quarters. 也许,乘坐经济舱或廉价航班时,人们所能做的还是尽量在那蚁穴般的环境里忍受他人的种种陋习。