Chances are you spend a lot of time waiting for or riding the bus, alongside dozens of strangers in often uncomfortably close quarters. Ever spent that time wondering about the lives of those fellow travelers or even whether you may be compatible with that handsome stranger or pretty passenger?
你或許常常需要花許多時間在擁擠的陌生人群中等公車，或者和一群陌生人擠公交。你是否會忍不住去猜測那些陌生乘客的生活，甚至是想象自己可以和這些俊男或美女有一段難忘的邂逅？其實真愛可能就在其中。
Now a new service, dating around the Third Ring Road, answers the question of romantic possibilities by offering passengers a friendly atmosphere in which to meet other singles over the course of three-hour journey, starting every Tuesday and Thursday from 6 pm at Gongzhufen.
現在一項名為“愛在三環”的全新服務正好可以制造這樣的浪漫邂逅，該交友班車每周二、四晚六點于公主墳站發車，在三個小時的車程中，活動組織者為那些單身乘客營造了一個很好的交友氛圍，這樣他們便可以結識其他的單身一族們。
The trip offers a relaxing space for busy office workers so they can make friends while efficiently using the service to commute home, the organizer Zhangpeng explained, saying they were inspired by seeing hundreds of people waiting to catch buses home in Guomao.
該活動組織者張彭表示，交友公車之旅一方面為那些平日忙忙碌碌的上班族提供了一個放松的交友空間，另一方面也為他們提供了便捷的乘車方式，節省了時間。他稱該創意來自一群人在國貿扎堆等車的場景。
Zhang says that, with just over a month under their belt, they have still had trouble filling seats. the service had seen almost 100 passengers, four fifths of whom were female.
張彭回憶過去的一個月時間，他們仍然遭遇上座率較低的尷尬。該活動已接待了近百位乘客，其中五分之四是女性。
Nevertheless, Zhang says the general response has been skepticism.
但張彭也表示，人們對他們的舉動普遍持懷疑態度。
Postgraduate student Hou Xiaosu, 24, is one of the doubters. "It's an interesting idea but I doubt if they will make money even after they've been operating for a while."
24歲的在校研究生侯曉蘇（音譯）提出質疑說：“這是個有趣的想法，但我懷疑該活動在運行一段時間后，會不會變成商業性質。”
"We will bear the cost [over 10,000 yuan a month] ourselves and stick to our free promise for at least one year," Zhang assured a magazine.
張彭在接受雜志專訪時表示：“我們會自掏腰包來承擔每月一萬多元的開銷，我們堅守無償服務這個承諾至少一年的時間。”
Zhang recommends making a reservation on their website, which has a timetable of all 39 stops on the route - just pick your stop and an SMS will warn you of the love bus's imminent arrival; while registering, gender should also be marked so the numbers of successfully reserved male and female passengers can be organized.
張彭建議到，該活動可以進行在線預約，網站上有行車時刻表，全程共設39個車站。你只需要選擇好你的車站，在交友公交將到時會有短信提示你。在注冊信息時會要求填寫性別，這樣一來，組織者便可以對那些成功預訂的單身男女進行詳細安排。
There are also a few rules: girls are not allowed to sit next to each other. Passengers are issued with a "lollipop" they can use to show their interest or not as a new fellow boards the bus and makes his way down the aisle (a smiley face signals the green light). Declined men will then move on to the next girl, or if he totally fails, sit on his own.
該活動有幾條規則：女生之間不能鄰座；當有新乘客走過過道時，其他人可以用手中的“棒棒糖”牌子表達對方是否為自己的心動對象（“微笑的臉”表示邀請對方坐在鄰座）。被拒絕的男生會走向下一個女生，如果沒有人選擇，他就只能獨自坐在一邊了。
Successful men will have to change seats every seven minutes while, at the instigation of former users, activities such as a winking game have been introduced, with prizes and forfeits. The current top prize is a woman's wedding veil, sponsored by a Suzhou couple who export wedding wear and wish to show support and encourage ladies to be proactive.
交友成功的男生每隔7分鐘左右會交換一次座位，好多過往參與者都紛紛獻計，表示中間可以穿插譬如眨眼游戲這樣的小活動，并設置獎品及懲罰辦法。目前一等獎是一套婚紗，該獎品由一對做婚紗出口生意的蘇州夫婦提供，旨在鼓勵女性積極參與。
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（來源：21世紀英語 編輯：Julie）
