Data and Tools: An Overview of NITC Research Impacts
The National Institute for Transportation and Communities (NITC) is coming to a close, and we wanted to take a moment to look back at some of the impacts our center has had. See below for some of the outcomes of NITC research improving transportation data and tools, to help practitioners create research-driven solutions.
- First, read about VisionEval, the open-source modeling framework which has been enhanced through work supported by NITC.
- Next, check out an overview of BikePed Portal, the nationwide nonmotorized database which was launched by a NITC pooled fund project.
- Finally, learn how another NITC pooled fund project gave rise to a "data fusion" technique which is making it possible for agencies to predict bicycle volumes across an entire transportation network.
Strengthening the Predictive Powers of VisionEval: NITC's Impact On Scenario Planning
VisionEval is an open-source modeling framework used by transportation agencies all around the country to evaluate the long-term impacts of various transportation, land use, and policy scenarios. Over the past several years, the US Department of Transportation-funded National Institute for Transportation and Communities (NITC) has helped to refine VisionEval, incorporating new travel modes such as car sharing, bike...
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The National Institute for Transportation and Communities (NITC) is coming to a close, and we wanted to take a moment to look back at some of the impacts our center has had. See below for some of the outcomes of NITC research on creating safer streest for active transportation.
- First, read about Lessons From The Green Lanes, the first comprehensive evaluation of protected bicycle lanes in North America.
- Next, see how NITC funding has contributed to Rethinking Streets, furthering the Complete Streets movement.
- Finally, read about how NITC research has changed bus stops in Utah for the better.
Lessons from the Green Lanes
Protected bike lanes, sometimes called cycle tracks, are on-street lanes separated from traffic by curbs, planters, parked cars or posts to help organize the street and make riding a bike appealing for people of all ages and abilities. NITC research led by Christopher Monsere, Jennifer Dill, Kelly Clifton and Nathan McNeil of Portland State University evaluated the risks and rewards of cities' investment in putting these facilities on the ground.
The researchers found that bicycle ridership increased on all the studied streets, with an average increase of 72 percent. Some people said they cycled more in general because of the new lanes. Some said they would have taken another mode of...
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The National Institute for Transportation and Communities (NITC) is coming to a close, and we wanted to take a moment to look back at some of the impacts our center has had. See below for some of the outcomes of NITC research into land use and transportation planning for a more equitable, sustainable future.
- First, read about an innovative communication method of sharing research through comics.
- Next, find out how transit station area development impacts demographic, residential, and business outcomes.
- Then, read about the influentional study that showed that active transportation street improvements lead to increased revenue for local businesses.
- Finally, take a look at a unique set of collaborations between transportation and social work professionals that was pioneered at the University of Texas at Arlington and the University of Arizona.
Moving From Cars To People: A Comic About Transportation and Land Use
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The National Institute for Transportation and Communities (NITC) is coming to a close, and we wanted to take a moment to look back at some of the impacts our center has had. See below for some of the outcomes of NITC research improving the overall sustainability of our nation's transportation systems.
Applying a Mt. Mazama Volcanic Ash Treatment as a Trail Accessibility Improvement
In a stellar example of moving research into practice, researchers at Oregon Tech paved a pilot section of trail using a NITC-developed sustainable paving method. A quarter-mile section of the Klamath Geo Trail, just east and up the hill from the Oregon Tech Klamath Falls campus, was successfully resurfaced using volcanic ash from Mount Mazama.
Substituted for portland cement, Mazama ash can be used as a more sustainable, locally sourced pozzolan to firm up gravel roadways and trail surfaces. Building on previous work by Matthew Sleep and Damien Matzen of Oregon Tech, researchers C.J. Riley and Ashton Greer employed a Mt. Mazama volcanic ash soil amendment to improve the surface stability and firmness of the trail.
The research team conducted before-and-after tests using wheelchairs and other wheeled devices, to evaluate the firmness of the trail surface. After the treatments, the surface was significantly more firm and stable, meaning that people who use mobility devices could now enjoy improved access to the natural area.
Most pavement projects use portland...
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The National Institute for Transportation and Communities (NITC) is coming to a close, and we wanted to take a moment to look back at some of the impacts our center has had. Below, we're shining the spotlight on some of the students that have been supported by the NITC program over the years.
NITC Scholars
The NITC Scholars program recognized outstanding students working on transportation projects, developing the workforce by directing talented students toward research and practice, increasing the number and quality of graduates in transportation.
Check out the outstanding students who earned NITC scholarships here.
NITC Dissertation Fellows
NITC also supported doctoral students, covering expenses for PhD candidates at NITC partner campuses while working on a dissertation consistent with our focus on improving the mobility of people and goods to build strong communities. Here is a selection of recent NITC dissertation fellows and their work:
Job-Worker Balance & Polycentric Transit-Oriented Development: Toward Indices and Spatio-temporal Trends, by Robert Hibberd, University of Arizona
This research examines how transit-oriented development (TOD) affects employment access and addresses urban equity challenges, particularly in the context of...
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Transportation networks are a vital lifeline essential to the functionality of modern society. A newly published research report offers a new methodology for assessing transportation network vulnerability and resilience, with a particular focus on incorporating social vulnerability into the analysis.
Why? Vulnerable populations—such as people with low income, minorities, or seniors—could suffer higher levels of adverse impacts from disruptions. Road closures and other transportation network interruptions due to earthquakes, floods or other disasters may disproportionately affect these groups of people.
The research project, "Integrate Socioeconomic Vulnerability for Resilient Transportation Infrastructure Planning," by Liming Wang, John MacArthur, and Yu Xiao of Portland State University (PSU), addresses a critical gap by integrating socioeconomic vulnerability indicators into the evaluation of transportation infrastructure vulnerabilities.
The report demonstrates this novel methodology using the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area as a case study.
WHAT DOES THE METHODOLOGY OFFER?
The new methodology proposed by the research team combines spatial analysis, network modeling, and social vulnerability indices to identify critical links in the transportation system. It assesses the impact of potential disruptions on accessibility to...
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When developing a city’s infrastructure, considering the needs of every demographic is vital for the health and success of the community. One vulnerable group is older adults (defined in this project as people aged fifty or older). The purpose of the project, called "Understanding Travel Behavior and Accessibility for Older Adults: A Comprehensive Framework," was to learn about the transportation habits of older adults and develop a way to mathematically measure accessibility (the ability to access transportation) of older adults. Researchers from the University of Utah used those findings to understand the challenges older adults faced. They hope that their findings will be used to improve older adults’ lives and, in turn, the lives of those around them.
To examine the travel behavior of older adults, the researchers employed two strategies: they distributed a survey and conducted a focus group. They reached 724 older adults with the survey, which was distributed across the state of Utah in paper and online formats. In the survey, participants were asked to rank their four most preferred activities and answer questions regarding transportation to and from those activities. Using those responses, the researchers measured the older adults’ travel behaviors and travel satisfaction. Travel behaviors were measured using travel frequency,...
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Three dissertations supported by funding from the National Institute for Transportation and Communities (NITC) take on different transportation challenges, exploring ways to improve safety and connectivity in communities. Farzin Maniei, Adrian Cottam, and Kyu Ri Kim all completed their doctoral research with support from the NITC program. Read on to learn more about each of their projects.
Adrian Cottam, University of Arizona
Machine Learning and Big Data-Based Approaches for Quality Freeway Volumes
"If you boil it down, the whole purpose of my dissertation is to take existing resources that DOTs have, and try and make better use of them. For example, the Arizona Department of Transportation has loop detectors, but only in the Phoenix region. So it's a very small area out of the total...
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The Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) Student Chapter at the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) attended the national ITE conference in Philadelphia this past July. Six UTA students—Peirong Wang, Swastik Khadka, Mino Aji, Md Ashraful Imran, Sijan Shrestha and Andrew Mares—were able to showcase their talents on the national stage under the guidance of UTA faculty member Taylor Li.
Along with a fellow UTA student group, the Intelligent Transportation Society (ITS) student chapter, the students were also selected as finalists in the highly competitive transportation technology tournament, hosted by National Operations Center of Excellence and USDOT Research and Technology.
Swastik Khadka, who serves as President of the ITE student chapter, presented research on "Automated Traffic Signal Performance Measures (ATSPMs) in the Loop Simulation: A Digital Twin Approach" at the conference and was nominated for the best paper award.
Finally, the ITE student chapter received a nomination for the student chapter momentum award by TexITE, the Texas District of ITE, highlighting the dedication and impact of UTA's transportation student leaders.
The National Institute for Transportation and Communities (NITC) is proud to celebrate the recognition and success of these outstanding transportation students.
The National Institute for Transportation and Communities (NITC) is one of seven U.S. Department of Transportation national university...
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When Kyu Ri Kim was seven years old, she was struck by a car while walking in her neighborhood where there was no separate walkway for pedestrians in Seoul, South Korea.
Kim, who is now an adjunct research associate at Portland State University (PSU), received nerve damage in her legs and had to use a wheelchair for several days after the incident. This experience launched her interest in pedestrian safety, which eventually led to her 2024 doctoral dissertation research project: "The Central Role of Perceived Safety in Connecting Crash Risk Factors and Walking Behavior."
"That was the real starting point, my personal experience. And I'm curious whether other people really do understand the real risk around them. What are the crash risk factors around them and how are they different from individual perceived risk?" Kim said.
Her dissertation, supported by funding from the National Institute for Transportation and Communities (NITC), illuminates the relationship between pedestrian crash risk factors and perceived safety, as well as the relationship between safety attitudes and walking behavior. How the interplay between these factors influences people's behavior...
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The Pacific Northwest Transportation Consortium (PacTrans) is the Regional University Transportation Center (UTC) for Federal Region 10, housed at University of Washington (UW).
In June of 2023, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), or Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), awarded PacTrans its fourth competitive grant of $15 million over 5 years. With that award, Portland State University (PSU) joined PacTrans. The center is a mobility-focused University Transportation Center with a theme of, “developing human-centered and transformative multimodal mobility solutions for an equitable Pacific Northwest.”
Each year, PacTrans provides PSU with $150,000 to fund “small research projects.” Those projects are selected through a competitive, peer-review process. The Year 2 Request for Proposals (PDF) describes the process for PSU researchers to submit proposals for these funds. PSU plans to award no more than three projects. Therefore, individual project requests should range from $30,000 to $70,000.
Abstracts are due August 8, with full...
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