DETROIT (Jan. 9, 2013) – The Wayne State University Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) will have its largest presence ever at this year’s Transportation Research Board (TRB) Annual Meeting Jan. 13-17 in Washington, D.C. Wayne State’s CEE department, led by new chair Joseph Hummer, will send four full-time faculty members, one professor emeritus, one alumnus and nine students to the conference – most of whom will speak on panels or in presentations.
According to the TRB website, the meeting will attract more than 11,000 transportation professionals from around the world. It will feature nearly 750 sessions and workshops, with more than 40 of those addressing the spotlight theme for 2013: "Deploying Transportation Research – Doing Things Smarter, Better, Faster."
"We are thrilled to have such a large team of transportation experts and researchers representing Wayne State at the nation’s largest annual meeting of the transportation research community," Hummer said. "We are involved in some remarkable transportation projects. This forum gives us the opportunity to share our findings, learn from our peers, and find new and exciting areas for potential collaboration."
Hummer, an international leader in the development and testing of unconventional intersection and interchange designs, is set to present "Research on Alternate Intersections: Current Progress and Future Needs." He will participate in three additional panel presentations addressing issues such as double crossover diamond interchanges, the impact of nine panel service logo signs, and the safety effects of access points near signalized intersections.
Renowned Wayne State faculty experts will host a national focus group for its $2 million Federal Highway Administration Work Zone Safety Grant project headed by longtime Wayne State faculty member Tapan Datta. The focus group will bring together experts from across the country.
"These experts provide important feedback that will help guide our work zone safety guideline and software development, training efforts, and related policies and programs across the country," Datta said. "Ultimately, these efforts will help to reduce highway work zone crashes, injuries and fatalities."
In addition to Hummer’s presentations mentioned above, experts from Wayne State’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering will be featured in the following panels and presentations:
"Approach to Incorporate Multi-entity Perspectives in Transportation Infrastructure Investment Decision Making" Snehamay Khasnabis, professor emeritus
"Calibration of Microsimulation Model With and Without Network Incidents"
Snehamay Khasnabis, professor emeritus
"Economic Assessment of Public Rest Areas and Traveler Information Centers on Limited-Access Freeways"
Timothy Gates, assistant professor
Peter Tarmo Savolainen, associate professor
Tapan Datta, professor
"Effects of Public Rest Areas on Fatigue-Related Crashes"
Adam McArthur, student
Peter Tarmo Savolainen, associate professor
Timothy Gates, assistant professor
"Evaluating Traveler Preferences and Values for Public Rest Areas"
Ryan Todd, alumnus
Timothy Gates, assistant professor
Peter Tarmo Savolainen, associate professor
"Evaluation of Impacts of ‘Share the Road’ Sign on Driver Behavior Near Bicyclists"
Jonathan Kay, student
Peter Tarmo Savolainen, associate professor
Timothy Gates, assistant professor
"Examination of Factors Affecting Frequency and Severity of Crashes at Rail-Grade Crossings"
Brendan Russo, student
Peter Tarmo Savolainen, assistant professor
"Multiobjective Optimization Model for Transit Fleet Resource Allocation"
Snehamay Khasnabis, professor emeritus
"Preserving an Aging Transit Fleet: Optimal Resource Allocation Perspective Based on Service Life and Constrained Budget"
Snehamay Khasnabis, professor emeritus
"Statistical Analysis of Highway Crash-Injury Severities: Review and Assessment of Methodological Alternatives"
Peter Tarmo Savolainen, associate professor
Civil and environmental engineering students Amna Chaudhry, Jeff Morden, Ahmad Fawaz, Matt Duffy, Eric Malburg and Jason Pittenger also will attend the conference.
"This is such a great opportunity for students to see this community and field in action," Hummer said. "As a bonus, I’m sure we’ll take a little time to ride the Metro and visit sites like the U.S. Department of Transportation headquarters."
For more information on Wayne State’s CEE department, visit http://engineering.wayne.edu/cee/. A full TRB annual meeting program can be found at http://pressamp.trb.org/aminteractiveprogram/Program.aspx.
Wayne State University is a premier urban research institution offering 370 academic programs through 13 schools and colleges to nearly 29,000 students. For more information about engineering at Wayne State University, visit engineering.wayne.edu.