Skip to main content

Transportation awards for US experts

Key awards for thought leadership in transportation have been given out in the US to senior figures in the sector. These were given to three leaders in transportation academia, six students, and one long-time industry advocate. The awards were presented by the Council of University Transportation Centers (CUTC) on the basis of the winners having made outstanding contributions to transportation research and education.
January 25, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
Key awards for thought leadership in transportation have been given out in the US to senior figures in the sector. These were given to three leaders in transportation academia, six students, and one long-time industry advocate. The awards were presented by the Council of University Transportation Centers (CUTC) on the basis of the winners having made outstanding contributions to transportation research and education.

Norman Mineta, former U S Secretary of Transportation, and Dr Edd Hauser, director of the Center for Transportation Policy Studies at the University of North Carolina-Charlotte, were each given Lifetime Achievement in Transportation Research and Education Awards.

Mineta was chosen in the non-academic category for his extensive contributions to transportation research and education. The award is for individuals who have served in government, business or non-governmental organisations. Dr Hauser received the award for distinguished contributions to university-level transportation education and research.

The CUTC-American Road & Transportation Builders (ARTBA) New Faculty Award meanwhile was presented to tenure-track educators in recognition of outstanding teaching and research contributions. This was given to Dr Vikash V Gayah, assistant professor at 2882 Pennsylvania State University.

The CUTC-ARTBA Administrative Leadership Award: Honors individuals in a staff or non-tenure-track faculty position who have made outstanding administrative leadership contributions to the field of transportation. This was given to Ines Aviles-Spadoni, coordinator of research programmes at the Southeastern Transportation Research, Innovation, Development & Education Center (STRIDE) at the University of Florida Transportation Institute (UFTI).

The Milton Pikarsky Memorial Award was presented to two graduate students in the transportation field for the best doctoral dissertation and MS thesis with an emphasis on science and technology. These students were Dr Alexandre Jacquillat, 4005 Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Michael Levin, the University of Texas at Austin.

The Charlie V Wootan Memorial Award is given annually to two graduate students in the transportation field for the best doctoral dissertation and MS thesis with an emphasis on policy and planning. These were Dr Maite Pena-Alcaraz and Samuel J Levy, both of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

The Neville A Parker Award recognises the best non-thesis paper in the field of policy and planning in transportation studies. This was presented to Rebecca Walters of the Mineta Transportation Institute at San José State University, and Yu (Julie) Qiao of Purdue University.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Success of ICOET 2011 event for sustainable roads
    April 12, 2012
    The ICOET 2011 event proved a success for sustainable transportation – *Leonard Sielecki With over 500 delegates from 21 countries, the recent 2011 International Conference on Ecology and Transportation (ICOET) held in Seattle, Washington, USA proved a success. Organised and co-sponsored by the Center for Transportation and the Environment (CTE) at North Carolina State University, and co-hosted by the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDoT), the five-day conference ran from August 21st-25th
  • Meeting the IRF Fellows and hearing of their positive experiences
    April 23, 2019
    Morgan Morris, a master’s student at the University of Central Florida, recounts her life-changing experience as President of the 2019 Class of IRF Fellows After the short span of a week, a graduate research IRF Fellow transforms into an approachable, professional leader overflowing with inspiration and ideas. “In some ways, attending the IRF Fellows Road Scholar Program is comparable to going to an all-you-can-eat sushi buffet. You are not sure what exactly you signed up for, but in the end, you rea
  • Rebuilding the Human Dimension
    June 18, 2012
    We meet with Dr. Essam Sharaf, the former Prime Minister of Egypt, who has been honoured as IRF Personality of the Year for 2011 On 28 March, at a moving ceremony packed with IRF friends and delegates from all over the world, the IRF Personality of the Year Award for 2011 was formally presented to Dr. Essam Abdel-Aziz Sharaf. Discerned annually since 1951, the Award honours individuals universally acknowledged as having made particularly inspirational contributions to the fields of road infrastructure and
  • IRF accepting Fellowship programme applications
    July 14, 2014
    The International Road Educational Foundation is now accepting applications for its IRF Fellowship Programme. The Class of 2016 will start its first Semester in Autumn 2015. Students selected for the Class of 2016 will also participate in the 10-day IRF Road Scholar Program, held in Washington, DC in January. The IRF Fellowship Program provides a graduate level scholarship to young professionals who have strong academic backgrounds, professional qualifications, leadership potential, and a commitment to retu