Transportation issues facing the state of Illinois are among society's most vexing problems. Transportation efficiency, safety, traffic congestion, air quality, economic development and smart growth are issues facing our urban areas. The Metropolitan Transportation Support Initiative (METSI) at the Urban Transportation Center (UTC) at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) brings together faculty, students, and transportation researchers to address these topical issues with the goal to provide thoughtful planning and problem-solving solutions.
METSI was created in September 1999 with a grant from Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT). This Technical Work Program outlines the process to address current and emerging issues of urban transportation and to continue the projects already in process. Our purpose is to continue to conduct topical transportation research, undertake technical assistance and provide education and training to the state of Illinois, IDOT and other transportation and planning agencies in the state of Illinois.
The general scope of activities include the following:
Intelligent Transportation Systems
Transportation Safety
Geographic Information Systems
Infrastructure, Database, and Asset Management
Transportation, Land Use, and Economic Development
Transit Operations and Planning
Transportation Demand Management and Commuter Choice Benefits
Regional Planning
Highway Operations and Planning
Social Issues and Environmental Justice
Job Access and Reverse Commute
Transit, Traffic and Travel Demand Modeling
Freight, Intermodal and Supply Chain Transportation Analysis
Public-Private Partnerships
METSI funds provide an avenue for technical assistance in all areas of transportation to the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP), IDOT departments, and other planning and transportation agencies. The educational component of the METSI program is comprised of workshops, conferences, training courses, presentations, seminars and webinars in addition to student education, assistantships, and development. In addition, an annual Symposium is held which attracts attendees from the region and the midwest. Technical assistance recipients include Illinois Department of Transportation, Metra, the Regional Transportation Authority, Pace, CMAP, Cook County, Greater North Michigan Avenue Association, the Work Force Boards of Northeastern Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, Peoria and the TMA of Lake Cook, among others. The METSI project also includes provisions for the administration and information dissemination outreach efforts to public and private sector organizations.
Typical Research Programs include the following projects:
• McHenry County Transit Plan Implementation Task Force
• Lake County Coordinated Transportation Project
• Lake County Commuter Coalition Project
• Improving Ramp Metering Systems
• Center for Freight and Infrestructure Research and Education
• Freight Congestion and the Chicago Area Commute
• Regional Intermodal Freight Planning
• Highways and Sprawl
• Longitudinal Employer-Household Dynamics Data
• Commuter Choice and Emergency Ride Home Programs
• Travel Demand Modeling for MPOs
• Supply Chain Management and Logistics
• Rail Grade Crossing Safety Analysis
• Comparison of Commuter Rail University Pass Programs
• North Michigan Avenue by the Numbers
The following are recent workshops that were sponsored or co-sponsored:
• Making the Chicago Region More Competitive in the Global Supply Chain
• Congestion Pricing and Urban Partnership Workshop
• Employer Based Alternative Commute Initiative
• Safe Routes to School: Why They Matter
• Planning Transit Routes to Meet Your Community's Goals
• Climate Change: Tipping Point for TDM
• The Heat Is On: Why Hybrid Vehicles Won't Save the Planet
• CMAP Interactive Economic Development Conference
• Neighborhood Arts and Transit Workshop
• Moving Beyond Congestion
• Transportation Research Forum Chicago Chapter Workshops
• CMAP Innovation and Integration Summit
• Striving to be the Best: Employer TDM Programs that Deliver Results
• How to Make TDM Programs Boom for the Boomers
The faculty and staff providing the administration and research for METSI are as follows: Director, Joseph DiJohn, MBA, Research Professor, specializing in pubic transportation operations and planning; Vonu Thakuriah, Ph.D., Interim Director of UTC specializing in transportation equity and environmental justice; Siim Sööt, Ph.D., UTC Director Emeritus, specializing in interrelationships between socio-demographic patterns and transportation demand; Ashish Sen, Ph.D., Director Emeritus, specializing in transportation modeling and statistical analysis; Paul Metaxatos, Ph.D., Research Assistant Professor, specializing in model development; P.S. Sriraj, Ph.D., Research Assistant Professor; Kazuya Kawamura, Ph.D.; Karin Allen, MS, MBA, Assistant Director for Research Programs, Lise Dirks, MUPP, Research Transportation Specialist, George Yanos, MA, Network Analyst; and a number of graduate student Research Assistants. We also include faculty from other units on campus, including Peter Nelson, Ph.D., Computer Science, College of Engineering, Anthony Pagano, Ph.D., Managerial Studies, College of Business Administration, Jane Lin, Ph.D. and Korous Mohammadian, Ph.D., College of Engineering with special expertise.