Practice FrenchB2Full sample
La ville sans lumières
The Town Without Lights — A town tests reduced night lighting and discovers that careful darkness can save energy and reveal forgotten life.
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À Saint-Martin-sur-Loire, le conseil municipal a décidé d’éteindre l’éclairage public après minuit, sauf près de l’hôpital et de la gare. Au début, les habitants ont protesté. Certains craignaient les accidents, d’autres pensaient que la ville aurait l’air abandonnée. La maire a donc proposé une expérience de trois mois, avec des rues pilotes et une réunion chaque vendredi.
Lucie, qui rentrait souvent tard de la médiathèque, a d’abord trouvé les trottoirs inquiétants. Puis elle a remarqué des choses qu’elle ne voyait jamais : le bruit de la rivière, l’ombre des platanes, et surtout un ciel plein d’étoiles. Son petit frère a même vu des lucioles dans le jardin public, chose que leur grand-père croyait disparue depuis longtemps.
Peu à peu, les critiques ont changé. Les commerçants ont demandé quelques lampes plus basses devant leurs vitrines, les cyclistes ont obtenu des bandes réfléchissantes, et la facture d’électricité a diminué. À la fin de l’expérience, Lucie a pris la parole : « On n’a pas supprimé la lumière, on l’a mieux choisie. » La ville n’était pas moins vivante ; elle apprenait simplement à dormir.
Vocabulary
- conseil municipaltown council
- éclairage publicpublic street lighting
- trottoirspavements / sidewalks
- luciolesfireflies
- bandes réfléchissantesreflective strips
Show English translation
In Saint-Martin-sur-Loire, the town council decided to turn off public lighting after midnight, except near the hospital and the train station. At first, residents protested. Some feared accidents, while others thought the town would look abandoned. So the mayor proposed a three-month experiment, with pilot streets and a meeting every Friday.
Lucie, who often came home late from the media library, first found the pavements unsettling. Then she noticed things she never saw: the sound of the river, the shadow of the plane trees, and above all a sky full of stars. Her little brother even saw fireflies in the public garden, something their grandfather believed had disappeared long ago.
Little by little, the criticism changed. Shopkeepers asked for a few lower lamps in front of their windows, cyclists got reflective strips, and the electricity bill went down. At the end of the experiment, Lucie spoke: “We didn’t remove the light; we chose it better.” The town was not less alive; it was simply learning to sleep.
Comprehension questions
1. What is the mayor trying to show with the experiment?
- That the town can reduce lighting without becoming unsafe or lifeless
- That the town should close after midnight
- That residents should stop using bicycles
- That the hospital uses too much electricity
Show answer
That the town can reduce lighting without becoming unsafe or lifeless
2. Which places keep their lights after midnight?
- The area near the hospital and the train station
- All shops and restaurants
- Only the public garden
- Every street near the river
Show answer
The area near the hospital and the train station
3. Lucie immediately feels comfortable walking in the darker streets.
Show answer
false
4. Fill in the blank: « On n’a pas supprimé la lumière, on l’a mieux ___. »
Show answer
choisie
5. What does “éclairage public” mean?
- public street lighting
- public transport
- a town meeting
- a shop window
Show answer
public street lighting
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