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Welcome to our New Leadership Council Members!
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We are excited to welcome four new members to our Leadership Council: Jennifer Gress, Chief of the Sustainable Transportation and Communities Division at the California Air Resources Board; Joseph Lyou, President and CEO of the Coalition for Clean Air; Kate Meis, Executive Director of the Local Government Commission, and Darwin Moosavi, Deputy Secretary for Environmental Policy and Housing Coordination at the California State Transportation Agency.
Our Leadership Council is an influential group of leaders from government agencies, non-governmental organizations, and professional associations across the country. This group helps guide, frame and champion NCST research.
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Kate Meis | Executive Director, Local Government Commission |
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Dr. Joseph K. Lyou | President and CEO, Coalition for Clean Air |
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Dr. Jennifer Gress | Chief of Sustainable Transportation and Communities Division, California Air Resources Board |
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Darwin Moosavi | Deputy Secretary, Environmental Policy and Housing Coordination, California State Transportation Agency |
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Student Spotlight: Meghan Orr
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This newsletter, we’re featuring a standout California State University, Long Beach graduate student: Meghan Orr! |
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Meghan received her bachelor’s degree in music performance from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and has since pivoted her academic focus to behavioral therapy and mental health as she pursues her master’s degree in social work at CSULB. Meghan is currently working on a NCST white paper focused on developing a geographic information systems (GIS) workshop for high school students, where she is able to apply her unique background and perspective to spark students’ interest in GIS. Prior to CSULB, Meghan worked as a research assistant at Cal State Fullerton, where she was able to observe how structural issues and a lack of accessible transportation options prevented social work clients from fully participating in, and benefiting from, assistive programs, resulting in equity issues.
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Meghan’s studies at CSULB concentrate on the topic of integrated health—a concept that blends the mental and physical health worlds and aims to treat the individual as a whole. Her thesis project will examine the behavioral patterns of the Cambodian community in Long Beach when its members seek help with mental health issues; Meghan is specifically interested in the role of community and family support in promoting coping skills. She is also currently an intern at the Long Beach Child and Adolescent Program, where she does clinical therapy. Meghan hopes to become a licensed clinical social worker, and aims to continue working with children and families on supporting mental health in the family system. Keep up the great work Meghan! |
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International Symposium on Pavement, Roadway, and Bridge Life Cycle Assessment 2020
January 2021 — Online
The NCST and the University of California Pavement Research Center are proud to be hosting the rescheduled LCA 2020! The symposium will take place entirely online and will include keynote speakers, plenary presentations, and poster sessions. The goal of the symposium is to of share and discuss recent advances in life cycle assessment (LCA) for pavement, roadways, and bridges, and to discuss the future of pavement, roadway, and bridge LCA. |
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10th Annual International Portable Emission Measurement Systems Conference
March 11 & 12, 2021 — University of California, Riverside
The Portable Emission Measurement System (PEMS) annual conference gathers leaders and top researchers from industry, government and academia to discuss the application and significance of PEMS in emission and fuels research. The theme of this year’s conference is "From the Laboratory to the Real World: Understanding Community Impacts". Topics covered often include the latest developments in compliant and non-compliant PEMS; the benefits of portable activity monitoring systems and prediction of in-use emissions; and new developments for on-road measurements from an international perspective.
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Recorded Webinars to Watch Now
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NCST researchers shared findings from separate studies regarding alternative approaches for funding sidewalk infrastructure and whether these approaches could lead to more sustainable and equitable outcomes when applied to the cities of Atlanta, Georgia and Albuquerque, New Mexico. |
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In this webinar, Dr. Dessouky identified the desirable properties of a good cost-sharing mechanism and proposed specific mechanisms for the static scenario where all information for the passengers is known in advance. Dr. Dessouky also analyzed their advantages and disadvantages so that transportation planners can select according to their different needs. |
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This webinar presented findings from an analysis comparing the service levels of dock-based and dockless bike share systems operating in San Francisco with respect to underserved communities. Researchers found that the dockless bike share system’s larger service area and frequent bike rebalancing practices result in greater availability of bikes in underserved communities. |
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Susan Pike |
Professional Researcher, University of California, Davis
Sara Kazemian | PhD Candidate,
University of California, Davis
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This webinar draws on three interrelated studies exploring how ridehailing and other shared-use mobility services are impacting transportation planning and public transit agencies. Researchers focused on factors that enable or inhibit the formation of partnerships between transit agencies and ridehailing companies such as Uber and Lyft. They discussed support for partnerships from within the agency and from the public, and the role of policy champions in the implementation of these partnerships. |
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U.S. e-bike sales have been experiencing impressive growth. However, many questions remain as to how to successfully and equitably implement policy and infrastructure changes that encourage more bicycling. In a recent ITS-Davis Transportation and Climate Blog, NCST's Dr. Dillon Fitch (UC Davis) discusses barriers that prevent e-bikes from becoming widely accepted as a day-to-day means of transportation. Dr. Fitch also points out potential policy solutions to break down these barriers. |
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Recently, Dr. Miguel Jaller's research was featured in an episode of the UC Davis Unfold podcast on the climate impacts of online shopping. He discussed how the last mile of a delivery is the largest component of that delivery's footprint, and how consolidating deliveries can reduce emissions impacts. Dr. Jaller also weighs in on how the pandemic is delivering the electric truck in an E&E News article.
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2020-2021 Project Highlights!
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We’re excited to announce that we’ve awarded 24 new grants for the 2020-21 cycle to faculty, professional researchers, and postdoctoral researchers, including 17 applied research projects, two seed grants, four white papers, and one workforce development project! These projects will tackle a large range of transportation sustainability issues, from retired electric vehicle battery management to encouraging new markets for bike-share.
Two projects are focused on the growth of online shopping and what it means for transportation sustainability:
NCST Associate Director Genevieve Giuliano will lead a USC study on the impact of e-commerce on consumer travel. It is unclear if online shopping replaces consumers’ car trips to retail outlets, which could have environmental benefits, or whether the relationship is more complex. As e-commerce continues to increase and more delivery options are provided, travel behavior impacts become more uncertain. Dr. Giuliano will use surveys to elicit detailed information on e-shopping behavior. By collecting first-hand data on how people manage the receipt of goods purchased online, this research will develop a better understanding of the overall travel and environmental impacts of e-shopping.
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“I can’t think of a more timely topic,” said Dr. Giuliano. “The pandemic has accelerated the growth of e-commerce. As more people incorporate online shopping into their daily routine, it becomes even more important to understand how travel patterns may change as a result.”
UC Davis Associate Professor Miguel Jaller will lead a
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project examining the national impacts of e-commerce growth. Dr. Jaller’s project will focus on three key questions: 1) How much will e-commerce grow?, 2) will the growth be consistent across locations and demographics?, and 3) what are the impacts on the transportation system? In doing so, the study will develop a tool to estimate vehicle miles traveled and emissions from varying e-commerce scenarios (e.g., electrification, automation) for different geographic and temporal frames using behavioral, time series and approximate transportation demand models. |
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Estimating the Costs of New Mobility Travel Options: Monetary and Non-Monetary Factors
Lewis
Fulton,
Junia Compostella, &
Alimurtaza Kothawala | UC Davis |
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UC Davis researchers have developed a cost model of travel choices that individuals make related to urban vehicle travel. These choices can include deciding to own, ride in, and drive a private vehicle, or use pooled or solo ridesourcing. The model considers both monetary and non-monetary factors that affect travel choice. The travel choices affected by these factors impact broader society through traffic congestion, pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions. |
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Alkali-activated Materials: Environmental Preliminary Assessment for U.S. Roadway Applications
Kimberly E. Kurtis & Francesca Lolli | Georgia Institute of Technology |
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Paving roadways is highly energy intensive and creates lots of emissions. It is important to explore alternative pavement materials, which may have benefits in terms of environmental impact and durability performance over the current technology. This report explores the potential benefits of using of alkali-activated materials on U.S. roadways. |
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New Policy & Research Briefs
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Inspiring High School Students to Explore Transportation Careers
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METRANS Girls’ STEM Empowerment Day |
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The NCST proudly co-sponsored the
Transportation You Committee's Virtual Girls Empowerment Day on September 14, 2020. The event helped high school girls build professional development skills and piqued their interest in transportation and STEM. |
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The Empowerment Day included ice breakers led by USC undergraduate and graduate students, a panel of speakers from USC and the transportation industry, and breakout sessions for more in-depth learning. The event aimed to highlight the benefits of introducing women to various career paths, even outside of the transportation industry.
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STEPCon 2020 at UC Riverside |
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This October the NCST was a sponsor of the Science and Technology Education Partnership Conference 2020! Hosted by the UC Riverside, the event allowed high school students to virtually experience a series of science shows, interactive exhibitor booths, and roundtable discussions. Students also had an opportunity to meet science educators, scientists and engineers and enjoy thrilling presentations and |
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demonstrations from a variety of exhibitors! Topics covered included smart cities, transportation, microgrids, clean air sensors, and artificial intelligence and security. |
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UC Davis Undergrad Researchers Complete Summer Fellowships
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Our UC Davis summer 2020 undergraduate research fellowship students have completed their projects and presentations! The fellows researched a variety of transportation topics, including hydrogen fueling infrastructure, transit-oriented development, electric vehicle adoption, and the impacts of COVID-19 on transportation behaviors, among others. Students demonstrated in-depth knowledge on the research they had participated in, and three fellows were nominated to attend the California Transportation Foundation Mobility Symposium to (virtually) connect with industry professionals in a networking and mentorship opportunity. Great work fellows!
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The National Center for Sustainable Transportation is a consortium of leading universities committed to advancing an environmentally sustainable transportation system through cutting-edge research, direct policy engagement, and education of our future leaders. Consortium members: University of California, Davis; University of California, Riverside; University of Southern California; California State University, Long Beach; Georgia Institute of Technology; and the University of Vermont. |
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