Mail: hsr_group@mit.edu

ARCHIVE

2018

  • R/HSR Gets Together at the 97th Annual Meeting of the Transportation Research Board
    January 9, 2018

    Current and former students of the R/HSR group reconnected over lunch at the Transportation Research Board 97th Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. This was a great chance to share personal updates and to reminisce about how our individual experiences in the R/HSR research group have helped shape a shared systems-approach to our various research and professional lives. Current students and alumni also continued to expand their academic and professional networks beyond R/HSR at the annual MIT Reception at TRB held on Tuesday, January 9. The reception attracted many guests including research and industry collaborators.

    In the photo (from left to right): Aleksandr Prodan (Ph.D., MIT-Portugal Program, Superior Técnico in Lisbon, '16), Joanna Moody (Ph.D. Candidate Transportation), Naomi Stein (MST/MCP '13), Ryan Allard (Ph.D., MIT-Portugal Program, Superior Técnico in Lisbon, '15), Rakesh Sridhar (MST/TPP Candidate), Ryan Westrom (MST '14), and Maite Peña-Alcaraz (Ph.D. in Engineering Systems, '15). Prof. Joseph Sussman, the founder of the R/HSR group retired in January 2017 and was unable to attend the reunion in D.C. this year (see the article celebrating Prof. Sussman's retirement below).


2017

  • JR East Visits Prof. Sussman
    November 13, 2017

    On Monday, November 13, 2017, Mr. Takao Nishiyama (Executive Director, International Department and MIT SM in Mechanical Engineering, 1988) and Iori Mori (Assistant Manager, Technology Planning Department Innovation Ecosystem Project and MIT SM in Technology and Policy, 2014) of East Japan Railway Company visited MIT for a number of collaborative research meetings. During their trip, they met with Prof. Sussman at his home to discuss various international high-speed rail opportunities of interest to JR East, including the Mumbai to Ahmedabad HSR line in India and the Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to Singapore line. The three discussed how the CLIOS and CLIOSjre Processes - developed by the R/HSR group during the three-year research project entitled "The Evaluation of International HSR Markets for JR East: A Systems Approach" that concluded in June 2017 - may be useful in understanding JR East's business opportunities in these markets.

    As a token of JR East's appreciation for Prof. Sussman's 25 years as JR East Professor of Civil & Environmental Engineering and Engineering Systems, the company presented Prof. Sussman with an official JR conductor's hat (see photo below).

    In the photo, Prof. Sussman poses in his new official JR conductor's hat with Mr. Nishiyama.


  • R/HSR Alumnus Brijesh Dixit Joins India's High-Speed Rail Project, Collaborating with JR East
    October 1-14 2017

    Brijesh Dixit from the Indian Railways attended MIT as a Fulbright Humphrey Fellow, becoming an active member of the R/HSR research group during the 2015-2016 academic year. After returning to the Indian Railways, Brijesh has been selected to work on India's High-Speed Rail project. The first HSR project in the country is planned to connect Mumbai and Ahmedabad, a distance of about 500 km (or 310mi). Technology and a major part of financing for the project is coming from Japan, with their E5-series Shinkansen train technology to run at 320 kmph (or 200mph).

    In his new role, Brijesh traveled to Japan from October 1 to 14, 2017 to learn about all aspects of the Shinkansen system. The visit comprised of training workshops and lectures as well as fiedl visits (including a night time maintenance activity) and interaction with all stakeholders, including the Japanese Government, JR East, JICA, and industry partners. Brijesh learned that the technology is only one part of the success of the Shinkansen system; an equally if not more importanat aspect is the work and management culture surrounding the technology, which requires employee discipline and buy-in to all procedures. This integrated institutional and technological approach is in accordance with how the R/HSR groups studies HSR as "sociotechnical systems."

    Back in India, Brijesh is continuing his work preparing the specifications and bidding documents for the HSR project. Efforts are being made to complete the project by August 2022. Apart from constructing the HSR, the real challenge is to absorb the technology and replicate the work and management culture that has been so successful in Japan. Brijesh hopes to start a discourse with the industry and academia in India, perhaps modeled after the MIT-JR East research partnership that has flourished over the past 25 years.

    In the top photo, Brijesh Dixit poses in front of a 425 kmph test train during his visit to Japan.


    In the bottom photo, Brijesh Dixit (standing towards the center in the brown coat) and other members of the India Railway delegation meet with executives at the JR East Headquarters in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Mr. Masahiko Nakai (Executive Vice President) and Mr. Nishiyama (Executive Director, International Department) are among the executives from JR East in attendance.


  • Celebrating Prof. Sussman's Retirement after 50 years on the MIT Faculty
    October 2, 2017

    On Monday, October 2, colleagues and students of Prof. Sussman gathered at MIT Endicott House for an evening of cocktails, dinner, and reminiscing about Prof. Sussman's illustrious and impactful 50-year career as an MIT faculty member.

    During the cocktail hour, two former graduate students of Prof. Sussman - Carl Martland (Ph.D. Transportation Engineering, 1972) and Craig Philip (Ph.D. Transportation Systems, 1980) - spoke about Prof. Sussman's profound impact as a mentor, colleague, and friend on their lives and careers. After cocktails, the group moved to a sit-down dinner on the beautiful enclosed garden patio.

    Prof. Sussman opened the dinner with his remarks, thanking the audience for their attendance, emphasizing and acknowledging the contributions of the many students in attendance, and closing with his appreciation for his family for their support over his 50-year career. Prof. Sussman's comments were followed by remarks from Bob Skinner (former Executive Director of the Transportation Research Board), Jim Champy (Life Member Emeritus, MIT Corporation), Yossi Sheffi (Elisha Gray II Professor of Engineering Systems and Director, Center for Transportation and Logistics), and Cynthia Barnhart (MIT Chancellor and Ford Professor of Engineering). The speakers lauded Prof. Sussman for his academic integrity and commitment to scholarship in the field of transportation systems, his ability to manage people and foster a collaborative environment, his love of baseball, his love and appreciation for his family, and his kind support of both the professional and personal lives of all those around him.

    These speeches were followed by the reading of well wishes sent by those who were unable to attend the celebration in person. In particular, current Master of Science in Transportation candidate and employee of JR East Kenji Chigusa presented letters from Mr. Masaki Ogata (Vice Chairman, JR East) and Mr. Takao Nishiyama (Executive Director, International Department, JR East) (see photo below).

    Finally, Dan Roos (Japan Steel Industry Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Engineering Systems, Emeritus and the founding Director of MIT's Engineering Systems Division), who served as the master of ceremonies for the event, spoke about his long relationship with Professor Sussman, going back to their pre-MIT teenage years and his views of the contributions Sussman had made, emphasizing the impact of his work in many facets of the transportation field and on many students over the years.

    Many colleagues and students were in attendance to show their respect and support, some traveling great distances. One former student Naomi Stein (MCP/MST 2013; now Senior Analyst, Economic Development Research Group, Inc.) said of the event, "it was really incredible to come back and see and hear from generations of Joe's students and to think about all the impact they have made and are making on the world. Joe's dedication, values, and intellect carry far beyond himself in all those he has helped (and constructively challenged) along the way."

    In the top photo, Civil & Environmental Engineering Department Head Markus Buehler presents Prof. Sussman with his retirement gift: the class from his office door (1-163).


    In the bottom photo, Kenji Chigusa (MST Candidate and employee of JR East) presents Prof. Sussman with letters from Mr. Masaki Ogata (Vice Chairman, JR East) and Mr. Takao Nishiyama (Executive Director, International Department, JR East).


  • Prof. Sussman featured in the Course One Spring Newsletter
    May 31, 2017

    The Spring 2017 issue of the Course One Newsletter features an in-depth profile of Prof. Sussman and his career.

    Joseph Sussman, of CEE and the Institute for Systems, Data and Society (IDSS) has retired after 50 years in CEE. Sussman joined MIT faculty in 1967 after earning a PhD in Civil Engineering Systems at MIT. During his tenure as a faculty member, Sussman served as Head of the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering and as Director of the Center for Transportation Studies. In his research, where he applies a systems approach to transportation, he has worked in rail freight transportation operations, intelligent transportation systems, regional strategic transportation planning, and passenger rail, emphasizing high-speed rail. In 1991, Sussman was named MIT’s first JR East professor and played an instrumental role in building a strong relationship between MIT and the East Japan Railway. A revered advisor and mentor to students and colleagues, he led several generations of graduate students in the study of complex, sociotechnical systems. Sussman is the author of a graduate text entitled Introduction to Transportation Systems and is the recipient of the 2017 CEE Distinguished Service and Leadership Award, as well as many awards from professional societies.

  • R/HSR Members receive Civil & Environmental Engineering Department Awards
    May 18, 2017

    During the Civil & Environmental Engineering Department Awards Banquet on Thursday, May 18, 2017, Joseph Sussman, JR East Professor of Civil & Environmental Engineering and Engineering Systems, Emeritus received the Distinguished Service and Leadership Award. This award recognizes outstanding departmental service and leadership contributions of a member of the CEE faculty, to acknowledge colleagues who foster a culture of diversity, inclusiveness, and innovation, to further the department mission and vision and MIT as a whole.

    Undergraduate Mark Mockett ('19) - a CEE major and Mathmatics and Computer Science double minor - received the "Leo (Class of 1924) and Mary Grossman Award" in honor of Mr. Grossman who had a professional career in highway design and planning. The Grossman Award is given to an undergraduate student with a strong interest in transportation and a strong academic record. Mark served as an undergraduate research assistant (UROP) in the R/HSR Group from June 2016 - January 2017. Mark undertook a CLIOS Process evaluation of the Los Angeles to Las Vegas HSR corridor as part of the collaborative research project with East Japan Railway Company, entitled "The Evaluation of International HSR Markets for JR East: A Systems Approach." This coming summer, Mark will pursue another UROP in the Megacity Logistics Lab in MIT's Center for Transportation and Logistics.

  • Masters Thesis Signing
    May 17, 2017

    Takafumi (Taka) Hidema completed his thesis, the final step in receiving the Master of Science in Technology and Policy degree. The thesis, entitled "Competitive Strategy for the Proposed Texas High Speed Rail Project: A System Dynamics/CLIOS Process Approach" explores feedback interactions between key variables such as ridership, load factor, total travel time and fares and their effects on operational profitability in the short- and long-term.

    In the photo, Taka visited Prof. Sussman to receive his signature.


  • R/HSR Students Participate in the 7th Annual Civil & Environmental Engineering Research "Speed Dating" Event
    March 10, 2017

    Rakesh Sridhar (TPP/MST '18) presented a poster entitled "Application of the CLIOS Process to the Emirate of Abu Dhabi's Transportation System" . This poster summarizes the culmination of a two-year research project in collaboration with Masdar Institute.

    Joanna Moody (MST '16, Ph.D. Candidate) presented a poster entitled "High-Speed Rail Market Selection Process for East Japan Railway Company." This poster motivated and presented the methodological results of a three-year research partnership: a two-part process that helps JR East consider how different international high-speed rail markets might develop and what business role JR East might adopt to best match these markets. Joanna's presentation was selected by the Civil & Environmental Engineering Department for this year's "Best Graduate Poster" award.

  • R/HSR Celebrates Professor Sussman's 25 years as JR East Professor.
    March 2, 2017

    Current graduate students and local alumni of the Regional Transportation Planning and High-Speed Rail Group joined in the celebration of the 25th anniversary of the JR East-MIT partnership! See the full feature article below.
    In the photo (from left to right): Takafumi Hidema (TPP '17), Rakesh Sridhar (TPP/MST '18), Kenji Chigusa (MST '18), Tolu Ogunbekun (MEng-T, '15), Joanna Moody (MST '16, Ph.D. Candidate), Joseph Sussman (JR East Professor, Emeritus), Maite Peña-Alcaraz (Ph.D. ESD '15), Scott Middleton (MST/MCP '18), Naomi Stein (MST/MCP '14), Iori Mori (TPP '15 and JR East representative), and Masahiro Yamada (SDM '17)


  • Current and Former R/HSR Students Reconnect at the Transportation Research Board 96th Annual Meeting.
    January 8-12, 2017

    The R/HSR group held a celebratory dinner at the Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. The dinner was a great chance for current students to reconnect with former members of the research group. For those who could not attend the dinner, there was time to meet up with R/HSR colleagues and friends for coffee or lunch throughout the week (see photos). Current students and alumni also continued to expand their academic and professional networks beyond R/HSR at the annual MIT Reception at TRB held on Tuesday, January 10. The reception attracted many guests including research and industry collaborators.

    In the top photo (from left to right): Kenji Chigusa (JR East / MST '18) and his wife Yuriko, Rakesh Sridhar (TPP '17), Daniel Mascoop (MCP '17), Scott Middleton (MST/MCP '18), Joanna Moody (Ph.D. Candidate), Ryan Westrom (MST '14), Dagin Faulkner (CEE SB '16), Bruno Agosta (MST '15), and Naomi Stein (MST/MCP '13).


    In the bottom left photo: Maite Pena-Alcaraz (ESD Ph.D. '15) and Sevara Melibaeva (MST, '10) meet for coffee.
    In the bottom right photo: Joanna Moody (Ph.D. Candidate) and Tolu Ogunbekun (MEng-T '15) meet for lunch.


  • MST Thesis selected for 2016 Council of University Transportation Centers Award!
    January 7, 2017

    Joanna Moody of the Regional Transportation and High-Speed Rail (R/HSR) research group was selected to receive the 2016 Charley V. Wootan Memorial Award for outstanding Masters Thesis in Policy and Planning, given annually by the Council of University Transportation Centers (CUTC). Joanna, who is now a Ph.D. candidate in the Interdisciplinary Doctoral Program in Transportation wrote the thesis, entitled "Development of a Predictive Coalition building Analysis for Stakeholders of Sociotechnical Systems," under the supervision of Joseph Sussman, JR East Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Engineering Systems. The award was presented at the CUTC reception at the 96th annual meeting of the Transportation Research Board in Washington D.C. on January 7, 2017.

    In the photos: Joanna was joined by two other students of the National University Rail Center (NURail) who received "outstanding graduate student of the year" awards. From right to left: Samantha Chadwick (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign), Joanna Moody (MIT R/HSR), Steven Landry (Michigan Tech), and Prof. Christopher Barkan, Executive Director of the Rail Transportation and Engineering Center (RailTEC) at UIUC.


    In 2015, two other graduate students from the R/HSR group received the Wootan Award. Samuel Levy (MST '15) won in the Master's category for his thesis: "Capacity Challenges on the California High-Speed Rail Shared Corridors: How Local Decisions Have Statewide Impacts." Maite Peña-Alcaraz (ESD Ph.D. '15) won in the PhD category for her dissertation entitled "Analysis of Capacity Pricing and Allocation Mechanisms in Shared Railway Systems."

2016

    • R/HSR Alumna Jayne Chang Completes Internship at JR East
      December 22, 2016

      Jayne Chang (CEE SB '16), sponsored by Prof. Sussman, leveraged R/HSR research connections and opportunities with the MIT-Japan program to begin an internship with East Japan Railway Company (JR East). Her internship at the JR East Research and Development Center located in Saitama Prefecture took place from June to December 2016. She worked in the Frontier Service Development Lab, a group of about fifty researchers within the R&D Center focused on improving customer experience through innovative technological advancements.

      Jayne spearheaded a project entitled "Examining the Provision of Railway Transit Information to Foreign Visitors in the Tokyo Metropolitan Area and Strategies for Improvement." Jayne's research explored why inbound visitors might find the railway system in Tokyo hard to use and how JR East could do better. She identified four key areas that influence the ease-of-use of railway transit systems for foreign passengers in Japan - namely wayfinding, route planning, staff assistance, and ticketing - and explored ways to streamline information on these areas to improve the customer experience.

      Culminating her internship, Jayne presented on her research findings to an audience of about 80 people (see photo below). Included in the audience were Mr. Masaki Ogata, Vice-Chairman of the East Japan Railway Company, and other members from the company's upper management.


    • Masters Thesis Signing
      May 18, 2016

      Masters students graduating from the R/HSR research group all get their theses signed a day before the deadline!


      In the photo below, from left to right: Ryota (Tommy) Yasutomi and Rebecca Heywood (top row), Patton Doyle (middle), and Tatsuya Doi and Joanna Moody (bottom row) with their theses:

    • R/HSR Students Receive Civil and Environmental Engineering Department Awards
      May 13, 2016

      DUSP and CEE senior undergraduate Daniel Mascoop was awarded the "Leo (Class of 1924) and Mary Grossman Award" in honor of Mr. Grossman who had a professional career in highway design and planning. The Grossman Award is given to an undergraduate student with a strong interest in transportation and a strong academic record. Daniel is very active in research in the transportation fields, working on an internship with Professor Ben-Akiva in Singapore and with Professor Sussman and the R/HSR Group on his senior capstone project entitled "Evaluating the Process of Developing Infrastructure Systems Through Investigation of an Important Rail Hub". Daniel was also one of the leaders in the fossil fuel divestment movement at MIT over the past year and played a positive role in its reaching an eventual agreement.

      Graduate student Scott Middleton received the "Maseeh Award for Excellence as a Teaching Assistant" for his significant contributions to course work and student support. Scott was nominated for his work with Professor Sussman's undergraduate CEE course, 1.011 Project Evaluation and Management. He was said to be one of the best TA's his nominator had worked with in decades and was praised for his welcoming and approachable manner that set students at ease.


      Graduate student Joanna Moody was awarded the "Trond Kaalstad (Class of 1957) Fellowship." This award, named after a former CEE Administrative Officer, recognizes outstanding an graduate student who displays leadership and contributes significantly to the well-being of the CEE community. Joanna's service to CEE includes being a student representative on the Department Social Committee (2014-2015) and being an event coordinator for the MIT Transportation Showcase, the CTL lecture series, and the MIT-TDC Conference in New York for the past two years. Joanna is also an active board member of both the MIT Transportation Club and the Transportation Student Group.

    2016

    • 2016 Joint Rail Conference
      April 12-15, 2016

      Scott Middleton (MST/MCP '18) presented at the 2016 Joint Rail Conference in Columbia, South Carolina during a NURail session dedicated to graduate student research. Scott presented on innovative methods for analyzing high-speed rail opportunities in the United States, including the CLIOS Process. The content of this presentation drew upon the Regions/High-Speed Rail Group's work on the Northeast Corridor and other high-profile HSR case studies.

    • Eno Announces the Future Leaders Development Conference Class of 2016
      April 1, 2016

      Joanna Moody (MST '16) was selected to participate in the Eno Future Leaders Development Conference (LDC). Each year, the LDC gives 20 of the nation's top graduate students in transportation a first-hand look at how national transportation policies are developed. Those selected as "Eno Fellows" come to Washington, DC for a week to meet with federal officials and leaders of business and non-profit organizations. Corinna Li, (MST-MCP '16) was also selected to attend.

    • Professor Sussman Presents at Technology Day at UMass Amherst In Honor of Retiring Professor John Collura
      March 24, 2016

      Professor Sussman presented on complex socio technical systems and high-speed rail. Read more through Dr. Anna Nagurney's blog here.



      Professor Joseph Sussman, Professor John Collura, and Professor Anna Anagurney.


    • Wrapping up a second year of research with East Japan Railway Company with a trip to Tokyo
      February 22-23, 2016

      Professor Sussman, Joanna Moody (MST '16), Patton Doyle (MST '16), and Scott Middleton (MST/MCP '18) traveled to JR East headquarters in Shinjuku, Tokyo for a series of meetings on February 22 and 23. They presented the second year of work developing and applying the JR East Market Selection Process to various HSR developments around the world. This research continues to develop a framework to guide JR East in understanding how it might get involved in budding international HSR markets.

      The MIT team had an opportunity to meet with members of the Executive Board of JR East, including Masaki Ogata (Vice Chairman), Takao Nishiyama (Executive Director, International Department), and Atsushi Yokoyama (Executive Director, Research and Development Center). While in Tokyo, the research team also had an opportunity to catch-up with Iori Mori (TPP '14), a former R/HSR student from JR East and an active participant on this research project. Professor Sussman also met with Kenji Chigusa, a newly admitted MST student from JR East who will be joining the R/HSR research group this fall.

      With the insights gained from these meetings and funding for a third year of research secured, the MIT team returned to Cambridge to continue work on the project, with a particular focus on exploring how the JR East Market Selection Process fits into JR East's existing decision-making framework and international business strategy. The third year of research will officially start at the beginning of the Japanese fiscal year - April 1, 2016.

    • R/HSR Group Participates in the 6th Annual MIT Transportation Showcase
      February 17, 2016

      The MIT Transportation Club, along with the MIT Center for Transportation and Logistics and the New England University Transportation Center organized the 6th annual MIT Transportation Showcase on Wednesday, February 17, 2016. The Showcase is the MIT Transportation Club's flagship event, and is widely attended by over 200 students, alumni, faculty, and professionals that make up the greater MIT transportation community. The event kicked off with a keynote speech on "urban livability and the bicycle" by Nicole Freedman, Chief of Active Transportation of the City of Seattle. The keynote speech was followed by a concurrent networking reception (career fair with representatives from 19 companies and organizations) and student research poster session. The annual event continues to strengthen the connections among the MIT transportation community, particularly between industry and academia.

      Two R/HSR students were instrumental in organizing this year's event. Joanna Moody (MST '16) was the main event organizer, and Scott Middleton (MST/MCP '18) coordinated all of the logistics for the keynote speech. In addition, the research team working on the JR East project presented a research poster on one of the project case studies, entitled "High-Speed Rail on the Northeast Corridor of the United States: Evaluation of International Rail Markets for JR East."

      In the photo: Scott Middleton introduces the keynote speaker to kick-off the 6th annual MIT Transportation Showcase.



    • R/HSR Group Members Re-Connect at the TRB 95th Annual Meeting in Washington DC
      January 10-14, 2016

      The R/HSR group held a celebratory dinner in honor of the CUTC thesis awards received by recent R/HSR graduates Sam Levy (MST '15) and Maite Peña-Alcaraz (ESD Ph.D. '15) and Alex Jacquillat (ESD Ph.D.), a student of Professor Amedeo Odoni. The dinner was a great chance for the research group to reconnect with former members, including Naomi Stein (MST/MCP '13), Ryan Westrom (MST '14), Bruno Agosta (MST '15) and Joana Duarte Costa (Ph.D. student at Instituto Superior Técnico in Lisbon, Portugal.

      We enjoyed a great meal, great company, and a warm and historic venue. The dinner was held at the Old Ebbitt Grill, a Washington DC fixture located across from the White House. Established in 1856, the Old Ebbitt Grill was a favorite of Presidents Grant, Cleveland, Harding and Theodore Roosevelt and is still a popular meeting spot for political insiders, journalists, celebrities and theater-goers. R/HSR alumnus Ryan Westrom, based in Washington at dDOT, took care of the (excellent) local arrangements.

    • R/HSR Group Members to Present at the TRB 95th Annual Meeting in Washington DC
      January 10-14, 2016

      Challenges and Opportunities in Implementation of the Future California Rail Network
      Sam Levy (MST '15) will present work co-authored by A. Awadagin Faulkner (CEE undergraduate '16) and Professor Sussman on Monday, January 11 from 8:00-9:30am in Lectern Session 233: "Best of the Best: Raising the Bar on Intercity Passenger Rail Performance." Convention Center, Room 147A.

      Application of Multicriteria, Multistakeholder Decision Analysis to Federal Transportation Performance Management
      Patton Doyle (MST '16) will present his ongoing Masters thesis research as part of the Dwight David Eisenhower Transportation Fellowship Program Research Showcase. His presentation is third from the top in Session 519 on Tuesday, January 12 from 8:00-12:00 in the Convention Center, Room 202B.

      Measuring Explicit and Implicit Social Status Bias in Car vs. Bus Mode Choice
      Joanna Moody (MST '16) will present work co-authored by Gabriel Goblet-Langlois, Lauren Alexander, Jonathan Campbell, and Assistant Professor Jinhua Zhao (MIT DUSP) on Tuesday, January 12 from 1:30-3:15pm in Lectern Session 607: "Travel Behavior Across Modes." Convention Center, Room 140B.

      A Ride to Remember: Experienced Versus Remembered Emotion on Public Transit
      Patton Doyle (MST '16) will present work co-authored by Nathaniel Bailey, Tolulupe Ogunbekun (MEng-T '15) and Assistant Professor Jinhua Zhao (MIT DUSP) on Wednesday, January 13 from 8:00-9:30am in Lectern Session 771: "Transit Customer Satisfaction, Loyalty, Attitudes, and Behavior." Convention Center, Room 149.

    • R/HSR Graduates win Council of University Transportation Centers awards!
      January 9, 2016

      Two recent graduate student from the Regional Transportation and High-Speed Rail (R/HSR) research group were selected to receive the 2015 Charley V. Wootan Memorial Award for best theses in Policy and Planning, given annually by the Council of University Transportation Centers (CUTC). Samuel Levy (MST '15) won in the Master's category for his thesis entitled "Capacity Challenges on the California High-Speed Rail Shared Corridors: How Local Decisions Have Statewide Impacts." Maite Peña-Alcaraz (ESD Ph.D. '15) won in the PhD category for her dissertation entitled "Analysis of Capacity Pricing and Allocation Mechanisms in Shared Railway Systems." Both were supervised by Prof. Sussman. The awards were announced on December 1, 2015 and were presented at the CUTC reception at the 95th annual meeting of the Transportation Research Board in Washington D.C. on January 9, 2016.

      In the photo: CUTC Wootan Award recipients Sam Levy (far left) and Maite Peña-Alcaraz (far right) with R/HSR advisor, Professor Joseph Sussman after the award ceremony.


    2015

    • R/HSR graduate Andrés Archila named to important transportation post in Bogota, Colombia
      December 17, 2015

      Recent elections in Bogota, Colombia welcome Enrique Peñalosa to return as the mayor after 15 years since his first term. Juan Pablo Bocarejo, a Professor from Universidad de los Andes and an R/HSR research collaborator, has been appointed as the new Secretary of Transportation in the City of Bogota. Andrés Archila (MST '13) has accepted the post of the Under Secretary of Transportation for Sectoral Policy as an instrumental part of this new administration. They are challenged with addressing mobility for the fifth largest city in Latin America. Their term starts on January 1, 2016.

      From left to right: Professor Joseph Sussman (MIT), Professor Juan Pablo Bocarejo, and Andrés Archila (April 2013).



    • Representatives from JR East Visit R/HSR Research Group for Project Meetings
      October 7-8, 2015

      In April 2014, the R/HSR group began a new research project with the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). The project integrates the in-depth understanding of the high-speed rail markets gained therein into a new framework to help guide JR East's investments in potential market. As the project approached the middle of its second year of funding, representatives from JR East's Research and Development Frontier Services Development Lab and International Department traveled to MIT for a round of meetings on October 7 and 8, 2015. The R/HSR group presented the newest results from the ongoing research. In addition to these presentations, the meeting also included a number of interactive workshop sessions where JR East participated in the brainstorming process, provided feedback on preliminary findings, and shared useful information on the company's needs and internal decision-making process. This exchange of ideas will help the research team clarify and tailor research findings to the current state of international high-speed rail developments as well as the needs of JR East.

      In top photograph: Representatives from JR East meet with Professor Sussman in his office prior to the formal start of the meeting. From left to right: Mr. Kuji and Mr. Nakajima (International Department), Professor Sussman, and Mr. Sakairi and Mr. Kanzaki (Frontier Services Development Lab, R&D).


      In bottom photograph: Professor Sussman (at the head of the table) kicks off the meeting to the full group of JR East and R/HSR participants. Each of the participating graduate students made a presentation about their continuing work. From the R/HSR group and currently involved in the project are second year MST students Patton Doyle and Joanna Moody, first year MST/MCP dual-degree student Scott Middleton, and fourth year CEE undergraduate Awadagin Faulkner. Previous R/HSR student participation included ESD Ph.D. graduate Maite Peña-Alcaraz.


    • In Tokyo for meetings with East Japan Railway Company
      July 13-14, 2015

      Professor Sussman and second year MST student Joanna Moody travelled to Tokyo over the summer for another round of research meetings. This trip marked the first face-to-face communication since entering the second year of funding for a three-year research project. The project includes development a new framework to help evaluate international high-speed rail markets and guide JR East's possible investments in these potential market. At these meetings, the R/HSR group representatives presented new research advancements and clarified the statement of work for the second year of research as the group comes back for the start of the 2015-2016 academic year.

    • Professor Sussman Chairs Session at UIC 9th World Congress on High Speed Rail in Tokyo, Japan
      July 7-10, 2015

      Professor Sussman was invited to chair a session entitled "Academic Universities for Tomorrow's HSR" at the UIC 9th World Congress on High Speed Rail hosted by East Japan Railway Company (and others) in Tokyo, Japan. The session featured academics from around the globe who partner with industry to solve some of the most pressing challenges facing HSR development. Speakers included Valentí Fontseré (Technical and R&D Director, COSMA) from Spain, Igor Kiselev (Vice-Rector, St. Petersburg State Transport University) from Russia, Tsung-chung Kao (Director and Research Professor - RailTEC, University of Illinois Urbana Champaign) from the United States, and Xu Eei (President, Southwest Jiaotong University) and Bai Mingzhou (Beijing Jiaotong University) from China. They spoke about the role that academia and the research community will play in the continuing development and implementation of high-speed rail technology throughout the world.

      In top photograph: Prof. Sussman introduces the session entitled "Academic Universities for Tomorrow's HSR" at the UIC 9th World Congress on High Speed Rail.


      In bottom photograph: Prof. Sussman takes a spin at the controls of the Shinkansen driver simulator. You can see how relaxed he was!


    • Summer 2015 Internships:
      • Patton Doyle Works for the US DOT Volpe Center.
        Patton Doyle spent his summer working for the Transportation Planning Division within the Volpe National Transportation Systems Center - a unique federal agency within the US Department of Transportation. The Center provides technical expertise to public and private organizations. Over the course of the summer, Patton supported the FHWA's rule making process for transportation performance management. In addition, he worked to assess transportation projects for federal land management agencies and the Millennium Challenge Corporation.

      • Dagin Faulkner Interns with Economic Development Research (EDR) Group.
        As an intern with EDR Group in Boston, Dagin assisted the TREDIS division of the firm with the update of system inputs in preparation for the release of TREDIS 5.0, the latest version of the transportation economic impact analysis web application. He also co-authored a memorandum for a TCHRP economic development case study tool. As part of the development of a Colorado DOT case study used toolkit, he harvested Colorado employment forecast data from Moody's Analytics. He used IMPLAN employment data to lay the groundwork for an internal market access research effort. In that progression, he performed a preliminary threshold analysis for industries at the 2-digit NAICS level for the categories of metropolitan, micropolitan, and small labor market areas to observe whether the percentage of workers in a certain industry increased or decreased substantially at a certain employment population over each category.

      • Joanna Moody Works for Cambridge Systematics, Inc.
        Joanna Moody spent her summer working for Cambridge Systematics' Travel Demand Forecasting business line. Joanna provided support on the development of a statewide passenger trip-based travel demand forecasting model for the Wisconsin DOT, based in CUBE Voyager. Also for Wisconsin DOT, in partnership with the FHWA, Joanna helped in collecting and formatting commodity flow input data and developing R-code for a tour-based multi-modal freight model based on FAF3 data. In addition, Joanna was involved in a review of Amtrak's existing right-of-way and maintenance cost allocation model for the Northeast Corridor Commission (NECC).

    • Congratulations to our four new MIT R/HSR Alumni!
      June 5, 2015

      Four members of our research group graduated from MIT during the commencement ceremony on Friday June 5, 2015. Tolu Ogunbekun completed her Masters of Engineering degree in Transportation; Bruno Agosta received the degree of Master of Science in Transportation; Sam Levy was also awarded the degree of Master of Science in Transportation; and Maite Peña-Alcaraz successfully defended her dissertation and received her Ph.D. in Engineering Systems. Best of luck in your new professional activities!

      In the top photograph (left to right): Maite Peña-Alcaraz (ESD Ph.D.), Professor Joseph Sussman, Bruno Agosta (MST), and Samuel Levy (MST).


      In the bottom photograph (left to right): Tolu Ogunbekun (MENG-T), Maite Peña-Alcaraz (ESD Ph.D.), Professor Joseph Sussman, and Samuel Levy (MST).


    • Professor Sussman Presents Informal Seminar and Discussion on the Amtrak Accident on the NEC
      May 19, 2015

      Professor Joseph Sussman presented a discussion entitled "The Amtrak Accident on the Northeast Corridor: A Systems Perspective" to a crowd of Civil and Environmental Engineering undergraduates, graduates, researchers, and faculty. This informal seminar looked at the very recent Amtrak derailment outside of Philadelphia and discussed the overall nature of higher speed passenger rail along the Northeast Corridor. The presentation was followed by a stimulating and educational question and answer session.
      See the video!

    • Current and Former Students Present at Transportation Research Forum in Atlanta, GA
      March 11-14, 2015

      Recent graduate Ryan Westrom (MST 2014) and current doctoral student Maite Peña-Alcaraz (ESD Ph.D. expected 2015) presented research at the Transportation Research Forum (TRF) held in Atlanta GA from March 11 to March 14:

      Presentation: HSR as Transit: The Continuing Transportation-driven Evolution of Metropolitan Form, Westrom, R.J., Sussman, J.M.
      Paper: Analysis of Capacity Pricing and Allocation Mechanisms in Shared Railway Systems, Peña-Alcaraz, M., Sussman, J.M.

    • Wrapping up a first year of research with East Japan Railway Company with a trip to Tokyo
      February 19-20, 2015

      Professor Sussman, Joanna Moody (MST, expected 2016), and Patton Doyle (MST, expected 2016) traveled to JR East headquarters in Shinjuku, Tokyo at the start of the Spring Semester. In a series of meetings on February 19 and 20, the MIT representatives presented the first year of work on a new project that applies the CLIOS Process to various HSR developments around the world and then integrates this in-depth understanding of the system into a new framework to guide JR East in investments in budding international HSR markets.

      The MIT team had an opportunity to meet with members of the Executive Board of JR East, including Masaki Ogata (Vice Chairman), Naomichi Yagishita (Executive Vice President), Takao Nishiyama (Executive Director, International Department), and Takashi Sawamoto (Executive Director, General Railway Operations). While in Tokyo, Prof. Sussman had an opportunity to meet two former students from JR East, Ryusuke Sakamoto (MST, 2012) and Iori Mori (TPP, 2014). The latter is an active participant on this research project.

      With the insights gained from these meetings, the MIT team was able to return to Cambridge and complete the Year-1 Final Project Report. It was sent electronically to JR East on March 23 and was printed, bound, and mailed off to JR East on March 25, 2015. The JR East project team now moves into the second year of research, which will officially start at the beginning of the Japanese fiscal year - April 1, 2015.

    • R/HSR Group Participates in the 5th Annual MIT Transportation Showcase
      February 11, 2015

      The MIT Transportation Club, along with the MIT Center for Transportation & Logistics and the New England University Transportation Center organized the 5th annual MIT Transportation Showcase on Wednesday, February 11, 2015. The event was held at the MIT Museum from 6:00-9:00pm. Sam Levy (MST, expected 2015) in his capacity as Transportation Club Co-President started off the evening with a welcome address. After the speech, the event featured a career fair, co-coordinated by Joanna Moody (MST, expected 2016), and a student research poster symposium. Five students from our group presented their research at the event:

      Posters: Implementation Challenges for Shared Railway Systems: Case Studies in California and the Northeast Corridor, Levy, S., Peña-Alcaraz, M., Sussman, J.M.
      Passenger Transport Connectivity Planning: USA vs. The World, Allard, R., Moura, F.
      High-Speed Rail Market Selection Process for East Japan Railway Company, Doyle, P., Moody, J., Peña-Alcaraz, M., Sussman, J.M.

      Sam Levy giving the opening address for the 2015 Transportation Showcase. To his immediate right, Joanna Moody stands to be recognized as a co-coordinator for the event.


    • Group Participates in the TRB 94th Annual Meeting in Washington DC
      January 11-15, 2015

      The 94th annual meeting for the Transportation Research Board (TRB) was held in the Washington Convention Center rather than its decades-long venue in the Marriott Woodley Park, the Omni Shoreham, and the Washington Hilton. While long-time participants had to learn the ropes of this collection, the idea of having all the technical sessions under one roof and all the committee meetings in one adjoining hotel - the Marriott Marquis - won praise from most participants. Current students attending from the group were Bruno Agosta (MST expected 2015), Sam Levy (MST expected 2015), Maite Pena-Alcaraz (ESD Ph.D. expected 2015), Aleksandr Prodan (IST Portugal Ph.D. expectd 2015), Ryan Allard (IST Portugal Ph.D. candidate), Joanna Moody (MST expected 2016), Patton Doyle (MST expected 2016), Ryota (Tommy) Yasutomi (MST expected 2016), Tatsuya Doi (MST expected 2016), and Tolu Ogunbekun (MENG-T expected 2015).

      The group fully participated in the events surrounding the TRB annual meeting, including professional sessions, research committee meetings, and meeting with research sponsors including the NURail Center housed at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the East Japan Railway Company, and YPF and the Catholic University of Buenos Aires in Argentina. The group continued to develop alumni and industry contacts at the MIT Reception held on Tuesday evening. The reception, held in the conference hotel, attracted close to 300 guests.

      At the reception and throughout the conference, we had the opportunity to see former group members, including Regina Clewlow (ESD PhD, 2012), Naomi Stein (MST/MCP, 2013), Ryan Westrom (MST, 2014) as well as Dr. Craig Philip, a student of Professor Sussman's (CEE PhD, 1980). After a distinguished industry career, he is now a faculty member at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN. He was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2014.

      Joe Sussman, as a former chairman of the TRB Executive Committee, was invited to participate in the Executive Committee's special session on Big Data. Also he attended a special dinner honoring Robert Skinner (MIT SM in CE specializing in transportation, 1971) upon his retirement as Executive Director of TRB after 21 years of service in that post.

      Paper Presentation and Submission at TRB
      Sam Levy and Maite Peña-Alcaraz presented their work in Session 362 - Intercity Passenger Rail Transportation Research. The paper (in the conference compendium as TRB 15-1697) also included as author Aleksandr Prodan and Professor Sussman. It will be published in a Transportation Research Record (issue number pending):
      Paper: Analyzing the Financial Relationship between Railway Industry Players in Shared Railway Systems: The Train Operator's Perspective, Levy, S., Peña-Alcaraz, M., Prodan, A., Sussman, J.M.

    2014

    2013