Author: croehm@illinois.edu

The National University Rail Center of Excellence (NURail CoE) was well represented at the 104th Annual Transportation Research Board (TRB) meeting in Washington, D.C. on 5-9 January 2025.

NURail CoE partners from University of Delaware, Kansas State University, Michigan Technological University, Morgan State University, Rutgers University, University of Texas at Austin, University of Illinois-Chicago, and University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign as well as Center partners from Illinois Department of Transportation, Michigan Department of Transportation, and NJ Transit participated with presentations, in lectern and poster sessions, and on committees.

In total there were nearly 70 separate references involving NURail CoE universities and organization partners covering rail, freight transportation, and public transportation, including 15 authors who are NURail CoE PIs or researchers, one workshop chair, six session chairs, one committee meeting chair, and one discussion panelist.

NURail CoE university partners University of Texas at Austin and Rutgers were recognized by the TRB Committee on Transportation of Hazardous Materials (AT040) with an Outstanding Paper Award for an article published in the Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board. The article, “Quantifying the Influence of Tank Car Position and Train Configuration on Risk of Rail Transport of Class 3 Flammable Liquids,” was written by Di Kang (State University of New Jersey), Jiaxi Zhao (UT-Austin), C. Tyler Dick (UT-Austin), Xiang Liu (State University of New Jersey), Chen-Yu Lin (National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University), Zheyong Bian (University of Houston), and Steven Kirkpatrick (Applied Research Associates, Inc.).

During TRB 2025, Cambridge Systematics presented the Council of University Transportation Centers (CUTC) New Faculty Award to NURail CoE Principal Investigator Tyler Dick. Every year since 2003, Cambridge Systematics has recognized a tenure-track faculty member in transportation education who has made outstanding teaching and research contributions to the transportation field. Tyler is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin. At UT-Austin, he lectures on railway design and operations topics and supervises a team of graduate students engaged in research on railway operations, capacity, and alternative energy topics for a range of Class I railroad, agency, and rail industry supplier sponsors. Before joining UT-Austin in 2022, Tyler spent 10 years as Research Associate Professor, Lecturer, and Principal Research Engineer at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

The TRB Annual Meeting brings together transportation research professionals from around the world and is the largest global gathering of transportation professionals and researchers with a focus on innovative solutions for all modes of transportation. The thousands of transportation administrators, practitioners, policy makers, and researchers who attended the conference participated in more than 3,000-plus presentations in 350-plus sessions; 350-plus meetings organized by TRB standing committees; curated programs; and three days of exhibits, showcasing transportation-related products and services.

The 2026 TRB Annual Meeting will be held 11-15 January 2026 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center and Marriott Marquis in Washington, D.C.

The University of Delaware, one of the nine university partners in the National University Rail Center of Excellence (NURail CoE), a federally funded consortium led by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, hosted the Big Data Conference on December 11-12, in Newark, Delaware.

Approximately 160 guests — which included representatives from the Federal Railroad Administration, US Department of Transportation, most Class I railroads, suppliers and academics — attended this year’s conference which introduced new and emerging analysis techniques and how those methods can be applied to the large volume of inspection and operational data collected by railways to improve maintenance programs.

Three NURail CoE partners presented research during the conference, including the University of Delaware, Rutgers University, and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Piero Caputo, Jeremiah Dzeble, and Monique Head, all of the University of Delaware, presented their research on “Multipoint Vision-based Wayside Monitoring to Estimate Track Moduli.” Joseph Palese, a research assistant professor at the University of Delaware, joined Abel Ayele of Amtrak to present research on “Assessment of Railway Track Geometry Condition Using Advanced Machine Learning Techniques.”

Asim Zaman, a project engineer at Rutgers University, presented his research on “Artificial Intelligence Aided Stopped on Tracks Analysis: A Case Study on the Effects of Dynamic Envelope Pavement Markings.”

Arthur Lima, a UIUC senior research engineer, presented his research on “Cross-Correlation-Based Railway Change Detection: A Novel Approach for Maintenance Detection.” UIUC Graduate Research Assistants Augusto Ramos, Gustavo Ramos, Panshul Jindal, and Yash Kakde assisted with the research. J. Riley Edwards, senior associate director of NURail CoE, also was in attendance at the conference which focuses on the specific needs of railways and the practical application of data analytics to both infrastructure and rolling stock maintenance planning.

Dr. Quang Tran, an assistant professor at Michigan Technological University (MTU) and University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign alumni, visited with RailTEC students Neeraj Thakur, Coleman Froehlke and Alex Roskov and Assistant Professor J. Riley Edwards this week on UIUC’s campus. The group discussed shared research interests, and Tran also presented the research work his team at MTU is conducting. MTU is one of nine universities that comprise the National University Rail Center of Excellence led by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and is the first academic research and education center to be supported by the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Railroad Administration.   

Federal and state dignitaries, including Federal Railroad Administration Administrator Amit Bose, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin, U.S. Representative Nikki Budzinski, Illinois Department of Transportation Secretary Omer Osman, and University of Illinois officials attended the ribbon-cutting event.

The Grainger College of Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign officially kicked off the University-led National University Rail Center of Excellence (NURail CoE) on Wednesday at the Newmark Civil Engineering Laboratory with a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by federal and state dignitaries.

Attendees at the NURail CoE ribbon cutting included Illinois Grainger Engineering professor Chris Barkan, of the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, Federal Railroad Administration Administrator Amit Bose, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin, U.S. Representative Nikki Budzinski, Illinois Department of Transportation Secretary Omer Osman, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Provost John Coleman, and University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation Susan Martinis.

Together, everyone celebrated the first ever academic rail research and education center of excellence to be supported by the US Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) with the help of new funding in President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The $15-million center will advance research solutions to enhance the safety, efficiency, reliability, and sustainability of both passenger and freight rail transportation.

“A lot of people are saying thank you today, which is appropriate because a lot of work has been going on for years to bring us to this day,” Barkan said.

He continued by thanking the partners and collaborators within academia, government, and industry that made NURail CoE a possibility here at Grainger Engineering. And “most of all” Barkan thanked the students in attendance, as they are the reason “why we do this. You are the future of rail transport in this country.”

Barkan will serve as NURail CoE director and also serves as the George Krambles Director of Grainger Engineering’s esteemed Rail Transportation and Engineering Center (RailTEC), which recently celebrated its 25th anniversary and is the largest railway educational program in North America.

Coleman began the event by expressing how NURail CoE’s efforts touch on all aspects of the University of Illinois’ mission. Martinis followed and emphasized the importance of this work, as the climate for such activity has benefitted from an outpouring of support from government and academic partners across the country and locally here in Illinois.

Senator Durbin addressed the crowd, speaking about how engrained rail is with the state of Illinois – pointing even to his own background working as a yard clerk. The state’s emphasis on rail, he thought, made Grainger Engineering and the University of Illinois a perfect home for NURail.

“The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign is the right institution to advance research and development to improve safety, efficiency, and reliability of both passenger and freight rail operations,” Durbin said. “As home of the largest railroad track research laboratory in the United States, I look forward to the progress the U of I will make in collaboration with the National University Rail Center of Excellence (NURail CoE) consortium.”

Representative Budzinski, herself an Illinois alumna, spoke of the pride she has in her fellow Illini, as they continue to improve the safety and condition of rail in this country through NURail CoE.

“Students and faculty at the University of Illinois lead the way in 21st century research and technology every day – and it’s only fitting we tap their expertise to help bring our rail system into the future,” Budzinski said. “I’m thrilled to see my alma mater designated as the National University Rail Center of Excellence with a $7.5 million investment from the U.S. Department of Transportation. Along with partners across the country, the University of Illinois and our Illini students will continue to lead the way in improving safety and efficiency in our nation’s rail system. Their work will make a difference for passengers, for rail workers and for businesses transporting goods across the country and to the global marketplace.”

The event concluded with a ribbon cutting, photo opportunity, and a tour of the RailTEC Research and Innovation Lab (RAIL) that Administrator Bose and Secretary Osman and their staff attended.

“Today’s ribbon cutting is another instance where investments from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law are advancing rail safety, expanding opportunity, and laying the foundation for the modern 21st-century rail network Americans deserve,” Bose said. “The rail safety research and innovation that will move forward at the National University Rail Center of Excellence will be felt nationwide, helping to get people and goods where they need to be safely, efficiently, and reliably. FRA thanks Senator Durbin, Senator (Tammy) Duckworth, and others who supported the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and we congratulate all involved in the NURail Center as this exciting opportunity officially kicks off.”

The NURail Center of Excellence is a nine-university consortium led by RailTEC at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. The center also includes the University of Illinois Chicago, University of Delaware, Kansas State University, Michigan Technological University, Morgan State University, Rutgers University, University of Texas at Austin, and Tuskegee University.

The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign has been a leader in railroad transportation engineering research and education for more than 140 years.

“We are excited to celebrate this important milestone in the advancement of rail transportation,” Barkan said. “My partners and I are incredibly grateful for the support that the NURail CoE has received from the USDOT Federal Railroad Administration as well as the Illinois Department of Transportation, Michigan Department of Transportation, New Jersey Transit and our many rail sector sponsors and supporters. We look forward to continuing our work together and are eager to get started.”