Our Mission

The Center for Transportation Innovation in Education, and Research (C-TIER) mission is to address critical issues affecting the planning, design, operation, safety, and equity of the nation's multimodal transportation system in order to increase our nation's economic competitiveness and reduce economic, racial and gender inequality. Efficient and safe passenger and freight movement is inextricably linked to the economic vitality of a local area, state, region, and beyond as well as to the life chances of its citizens.

In consultation with stakeholders, as well as USDOT's strategic priorities, as expressed by the FAST Act's Improving Mobility of People and Goods priority and the known exclusive topic areas established by the Secretary of Transportation, we will focus on research and development that improves mobility, accessibility, and safety through information technology, network, operations, and land-use modeling and simulation, and transportation sustainability that will promote smart, livable, equitable cities, improve multimodal connections, system integration and security, data modeling and analytical tools to optimize passenger and freight movements and improve efficiency. In addition, the proposed centers' research will improve on local, state, and regional planning and setting of transportation priorities that deliver shared prosperity and enhance productivity.

The research conducted by the center will:

1. Support maintenance and improvement of mobility in the face of growing traffic and shrinking resources
2. Develop methodologies that optimize the performance of the U.S. transportation system with the user needs and safety as the major objective
3. Increase efficiency while maintaining security and resilience
4. Improve air quality to advance personal health and environmental justice
5. Remove barriers to transportation-disadvantaged individuals participating fully in society

These research outcomes will translate into reduced energy consumption, improved accessibility and cooperative transportation system performance improvement.

All the C-TIER partners are motivated to embrace innovative, interdisciplinary research projects, train current and future transportation leaders and workforce, and engage with the industry to enhance collaborations between agencies by improving efficiency and safety, sustainability reduced traffic congestion, and develop standards to ensure interoperability today and in the future. At the same time, our center will have a significant educational impact. The center faculty members have a successful history of enhancing interdisciplinary learning opportunities and engaging underrepresented groups. In the proposed center, this commitment will be continued and improved via integrated education and outreach components that leverage ongoing activities.