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.
