Research Projects | National Institute for Transportation and Communities

Statistical Inference for Multimodal Travel Time Reliability

Principal Investigator: Avinash Unnikrishnan

Co-Investigators: Miguel Andres Figliozzi , Subhash Kochar

Travel time reliability – or the consistency and dependability of travel times from day to day, and at different times of day – is a key metric that significantly affects people’s travel behavior. Since businesses rely heavily on transportation ... Read More

New Mobility For All: Can Targeted Information And Incentives Help Underserved Communities Realize The Potential Of Emerging Mobility Options?

Principal Investigator: Nathan McNeil

Co-Investigator: John MacArthur

Low-income residents, immigrants, seniors, and people with disabilities – these are people who stand to gain the most from new tools and services that reduce transportation costs and travel time. However, issues of affordability, technology adoptio ... Read More

Assessing Economic Impact of Disaster-Induced Transportation Disruptions Using A University Community Partnership Framework

Principal Investigator: Divya Chandrasekhar

Transportation systems play a critical role in maintaining supply chains for effective post-disaster recovery. The March 2020 COVID-19 lockdowns coincided with a 5.7 magnitude earthquake in Salt Lake City, Utah, resulting in supply chain disruptions ... Read More

GIS Training in Transportation And Environmental Justice for Promoting Student Success in STEAM Education

Principal Investigator: Joowon Im

Co-Investigator: Alan Klein

Transportation can have a significant impact on vulnerable ecologies, especially in rapidly urbanizing regions such as Dallas/Fort Worth. In order for future professionals to balance the needs of sensitive environments with the mobility of people and ... Read More

Developing Strategies To Enhance Mobility And Accessibility For Community-Dwelling Older Adults

Principal Investigator: Kate Hyun

Co-Investigators: Caroline Krejci , Kathy Lee

As we get older, transportation provides a vital link between home and community. Without reliable and easy ways to get around, many older adults (especially those who live alone) have limited access to essentials like groceries and medicine, let alo ... Read More

Understanding the Impact of Decentralizing Homeless Services on Transportation and Mobility in Salt Lake County

Principal Investigator: Sarah Canham

Co-Investigators: Ivis Garcia , Jeff Rose , Shannon Jones

How can relocating services away from a downtown center change the transportation decisions and patterns for persons experiencing homelessness? And how do those changes affect access to the services they need? New research from the University of Utah ... Read More

Data-Driven Optimization for E-Scooter System Design

Principal Investigator: Jianqiang Cheng

Are e-scooters just the first sign of a shared-mobility revolution? If they are, then researchers at the University of Arizona intend to make sure that the emerging transportation system has functional models on par with other modes of transportation ... Read More

Is Transit-Oriented Development Affordable for Low and Moderate Income Households?

Principal Investigator: Reid Ewing

Co-Investigators: Nicole Iroz-Elardo , Arlie Adkins

Transportation and land use planning, as a field, is shifting away from segregated uses connected by highways and streets to more compact, mixed-use developments connected by high-quality transit. This new paradigm has brought special attention to tr ... Read More

Mobility for the People: Evaluating Equity Requirements in Shared Mobility Programs

Principal Investigator: Anne Brown

Co-Investigator: Amanda Howell

Shared micromobility programs for e-scooters and bike share are becoming more common each year. How can we make sure they aren’t just being used for fun, but they’re also being prioritized for those who need a quick, affordable and accessible way ... Read More

Evaluating Improved Transit Connections for Ladders of Opportunity

Principal Investigator: Stephen Mattingly

Co-Investigators: Yi-Chang Chiu , Sia Ardekani , Courtney Cronley , Noelle Fields

Many transit operators employ limited strategies to provide connectivity to transit, like bicycle racks on buses. This project will examine more innovative options, such as: subsidies, hybrid ride sharing business models, flexible routing, smaller tr ... Read More

Exploring Data Fusion Techniques to Estimate Network-Wide Bicycle Volumes

Principal Investigator: Sirisha Kothuri

Co-Investigators: Joe Broach , Nathan McNeil , Kate Hyun , Stephen Mattingly

In order to make sure bicyclists' needs are considered when improving a transportation system, planners and engineers need to know how many people are biking, and where. Traditional bicycle counters can provide data for limited sections of the bi ... Read More

Scooting to a New Era in Active Transportation: Examining the Use and Safety of E-Scooters

Principal Investigator: Kristina Currans

Co-Investigators: Reid Ewing , Nicole Iroz-Elardo

In recent years, shared electric scooters (e-scooters) have taken cities around the world by storm. But how are people using this new mode of transportation? Seeking to understand the potential impacts of e-scooters on land use, infrastructure and su ... Read More