Dec. 8, 2011

Ann Arbor, Mich. – University of Michigan researchers focused on efficiencies in integrated, multimodal transportation announce an opening for a post-doctoral fellow supported through the Energy Institute’s Partnerships for Sustainable Energy Technologies (PISET) program.

The one-year fellowship will be dedicated to the “Consumer Uptake of Seamless Multimodal Mobility: Energy and Sustainability Implications” project.   One of three competitively awarded PISET projects, the study is led by the U-M’s Sustainable Mobility and Accessibility Research and Transformation (SMART) program, a U-M Transportation Research Institute and Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning initiative.

The study explores how physical and informational connectivity, including access to real-time, integrated information on multi-modal transportation (car and car-share, taxi, rail, bus, bike, ferries, etc.) affects consumers’ travel choices and energy consumption. Researchers will examine barriers to the use of sustainable transportation, including the inconvenience associated with a lack of connectivity and service predictability. The study will also focus on the development of integrative, cost-effective technologies including mobile Internet systems to address use issues.  Regions of interest in the study include Los Angeles, Portland, Ore., Beijing and potentially other major Chinese cities. The research team includes Principal Investigators David Chock and Richard Gonzalez, project lead Susan Zielinski and Peter Sweatman as a key advisor.

The SMART project emerged through the Fall 2011 round of PISET funding, which supports the appointment of research fellows for each competitively selected team. The teams’ research must bridge traditional disciplines to offer a better understanding of sustainable energy science, technology, or policy.

Learn more about the SMART post-doctoral fellowship.

Contact: Paul Gargaro, Michigan Memorial Phoenix Energy Institute, 734-615-5678, pgargaro@umich.edu.