UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Larson Transportation Institute has announced the recent appointments of two affiliate faculty members — Vikash Gayah, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering, and S. Ilgin Guler, assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering — to the Standing Committee on Traffic Flow Theory and Characteristics, as selected by the Transportation Research Board (TRB).
The Standing Committee on Traffic Flow Theory and Characteristics focuses on the development, validation and dissemination of theoretical, experimental and applied research on traffic flow theory and traffic flow characteristics. The committee seeks to determine the relationship between traffic flow theory and traffic flow characteristics in relation to the planning, design and operation of transportation systems.
Gayah, who received the National Science Foundation Early Career award in 2018 for his work in traffic flow theory, has been involved with the TRB since 2006, when he began attending annual meetings as a graduate student. His research and expertise align well with the needs of the committee.
“My research is in the area of urban mobility, traffic flow theory, transportation operations and traffic safety,” Gayah said. “These are topics that affect the daily lives of people across and country and around the world, so it’s really great to be in a position to help set the national research agenda in this area.”
With an equally long list of research expertise including multimodal urban transportation, public transportation, safety and infrastructure management, Guler is similarly suited to serve on the committee. During her TRB appointment, Guler said she is most looking forward to contributing to setting the direction for the future of traffic flow theory and traffic operations research.
“It is a great honor to have been appointed to the committee,” said Guler. “As members of the committee, we join a very elite group of transportation engineering experts from around the world who have the influence to truly make improvements, both through research and within the industry.”
Gayah and Guler will serve on the committee through April 14, 2022.
The Thomas D. Larson Pennsylvania Transportation Institute is Penn State’s transportation research center. Since its founding in 1968, the Larson Institute has maintained a threefold mission of research, education and service. The Institute brings together top faculty, world-class facilities and enterprising students from across the University in partnership with public and private stakeholders to address critical transportation-related problems.
The Transportation Research Board is one of seven program units of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, which provides independent, objective analysis and advice to the nation and conducts other activities to solve complex problems and inform public policy decisions. Members of the National Academies’ technical committees serve as individuals, not as representatives of the organizations by which they are employed or of which they may be members.