The University of Kentucky is part of a new Tier 1 University Transportation Center that will advance research and education programs that address critical transportation challenges facing the United States.
“These investments in four new transportation research centers will help advance innovation and create new solutions to increase accessibility,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao.
While the Georgia Institute of Technology serves as the lead institution in the consortium, partner institutions include UK, University of Tennessee—Knoxville and Brigham Young University. Civil engineering assistant professor Gregory Erhardt is the PI for UK.
“Public transit plays a critical role in supporting thriving cities and bringing essential workers to work,” said Erhardt. “Through the T-SCORE Center, the University of Kentucky and its partners will conduct the research and train the future leaders who will guide transit agencies through a changing transportation and technology landscape.”
The consortium is investigating the focus area titled: “Strategic Implications of Changing Public Transportation Travel Trends.” Its center, The Transit – Serving Communities Optimally, Responsively, and Efficiently (T-SCORE) Center, aims to define a set of strategic visions that will guide public transportation into a sustainable and resilient future, and to equip local planners with the tools needed to translate their chosen vision into their own community.