Special Interest Groups have been created in order to facilitate the exchange of ideas between researchers interested in the same topic area. They have all been approved by the WCTRS Steering Committee.

List of the WCTRS SIGs

SIG 1 - Transport and Spatial Development

Presentation

The Special Interest Group on Transport and Spatial Development focuses on the research on interaction between transport and spatial development, including modeling land use - transport interaction, land value changes as long-term effects of infrastructure improvement, pricing, Benefit /Burden analysis and the environmental changes. It organizes special session series in each WCTR conference and also separate seminars, symposiums and workshops between WCTRS. Recent meeting is the Seoul SIG-1 meeting which was held in March 2007. Also it has published two books, two special issues of technical journals.It was established chaired by Hideo Nakamura (President of Musashi Institute of Technology, Japan) in 1988 before the WCTR Yokohama conference, inheriting the ISGLUTI (International Study Group on Land Use - Transport Interaction) chaired by Vernon Webster (TRL, UK). Currently it is organized by Chair Kenji Doi(Kagawa University, Japan), and Co-chairs Michael Wegener (Spiekermann & Wegener Urban and Regional Research, Germany), and Yoshi Hayashi(Nagoya University, Japan).

Contacts :

Chair : Professor Kenji Doi
Faculty of Engineering
Kagawa University, Japan
2217-20 Hayashi-cho, Takamatsu
761-0396 Kagawa Japan

Co-chairs:
Professor Michael Wegener
Spiekermann & Wegener (S&W)
Urban and Regional Research, Germany
Lindemannstrasse 10
D-44137 Dortmund Germany

Professor Yoshi Hayashi
Graduate School of Environmental Studies
Nagoya University, Japan
Furo-cho, Chikusa-ku
464-8603 Nagoya JAPAN

SIG 1 web site :

http://www.tutrp.tut.ac.jp/~nakanish/index.htm

SIG 2 - Maritime Transport and Ports

Presentation

The Special Interest Group on Maritime Transport and Ports (SIG-2) of the World Conference on Transport Research Society (WCTRS) is dedicated to create a network of people involved in maritime and port activities, including academic and industry researchers, policy makers and operators.

SIG-2 was established in 1989 at the Yokohama WCTR. Since then, the SIG had a most distinct presence in all WCTRS conferences. In the Antwerp conference of 1998, SIG-2 had the largest single presence, with about 60 papers distributed in 14 sessions throughout the week.

People joining the SIG-2 activities of the WCTRS have developed over the years strong research links. The unique element of all SIG’s is the fact that within the WCTRS-community there is a continuous possibility for interdisciplinary work and discussion. We really can learn from each other!

After a period of limited activity, the Council of the WCTRS decided to re-activate SIG-2. During the maritime and port sessions of the Berkeley conference interested participants will get more news about planned future activities of SIG-2. After the conference, we will organize meetings with chairs of other associations in order to discuss all potential forms of co-operation.

Contact :

Anyone interested in SIG-2 can contact one of both chairs :

Prof. Enrico Musso	Prof. Eddy Van de Voorde
Dipartimento di Economia e Metodi Quantitativi University of Génova Italy e-mail: emusso@transportnet.org	Department of Transport and Regional Economics University of Antwerp Belgium e-mail: evandevoorde@transportnet.org

 

SIG 2 Web site

Link to the International Journal of Maritime Economics (IJME)

SIG 3 - Safety Analysis and Policy

Presentation

The analysis of transportation safety is multi-disciplinary. Economists, psychologists, physicians, mechanical engineers, civil engineers, lawyers and other disciplines have contributed to the literature. Our Special Interest Group was formed to ensure that the area of safety research is promoted within WCTRS and also that the rather disparate nature of the different lines of research are brought together under one banner at the World Conferences.

The SIG grew from two special sessions at the Yokohama Conference in 1989 to a set of eight sessions at Antwerp, where twenty-seven papers were presented. For the conference in Seoul, the safety SIG was the recipient of fifty abstracts from fourteen different countries, making it one of the largest subject areas at the conference. At Istanbul, we received 67 abstracts and organized 15 sessions, on a wide variety of topics including pedestrian safety, trucking safety, high speed driving and safety, and the economics of safety
Currently the SIG has confined itself to organizing sessions at the World Conferences.

The SIG is aimed at : government officials, industry representatives, medical personnel, economists, psychologists, and policy oriented engineers. In general we do not focus on “hard engineering” such as component design and highway geometry. Such researchers are well served by other professional forums.

Topics of interest include : how safe is safe enough?, user safety perceptions and psychological reactions, crash statistics, the acceptability of crash risks, the analysis of crash locations, policy options, the role of insurance and liability, modal safety performance and safety measurement, international comparisons, policy and program evaluation, valuation of statistical life saved, crash costs, evaluation of emergency response, and safety management evaluation. The only real exclusion is consideration of “hard” engineering such as design of automatic train control, construction of crash barriers and the like, although we do welcome discussion of the economic effectiveness of such devices.

The SIG is co-chaired by Professors Paul Jovanis, a civil engineer at the Pennsylvania State University, and Ian Savage, an economist at Northwestern University.

Contact :

All correspondence is dealt with by Professor Savage:

Professor IAN SAVAGE
Department of Economics
Northwestern University
2001 Sheridan Road
Evanston, IL 60208, USA
Phone: +1-847-491-8241
Fax: +1-847-491-7001
E-mail: ipsavage@northwestern.edu

SIG 5 - Transportation Infrastructure Systems

Presentation

The transportation infrastructure supporting human activities includes complex and interrelated physical, social, ecological, economic, and technological systems. Increasingly, inter and multi disciplinary expertise is needed to not only design and build these systems, but to manage and sustain them as well. Typical management problems are fraught with uncertain information, multiple and conflicting objectives, and sometimes numerous and conflicting constituencies.
Solutions are both complex and cross-disciplinary in nature, and require the thoughtful integration of sound engineering judgement, economic flexibility, and institutional understanding. The topic areas covered under SIG 5 include :
1. Transport Infrastructure Maintenance (deterioration modeling,
assessment technologies , decision-making for maintenance and repair)
2. Transport Infrastructure Economics and Finance
3. Transport Infrastructure Planning
4. Sustainable Development for Transport Infrastructure
5. Transport Infrastructure Security and Hazard Mitigation

Chairs : SAMER MADANAT and TAKAYUKI UEDA

Contact :

SAMER MADANAT
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
109 McLaughlin Hall
University of California
Berkeley, CA 94720
Tel: + 510-642-3585
Fax: + 510-643-3955
E-mail: madanat@ce.berkeley.edu

SIG 7 - Urban transport in developing countries : CODATU SIG

Presentation

Efficient and affordable urban transport and mobility for all are of prime importance for the developing world. The economic development of towns and cities, and the socio-economic well-being of their inhabitants, are directly dependant on the degree of success in creating socially, financially and environmentally sustainable urban transport systems. As the economic and land-use characteristics of developing country cities are often very different from those prevailing in richer countries (for which most transport engineering and technology has been developed), new and appropriate transport planning, engineering and management approaches are required.
SIG 7 is convened by CODATU, as the authoritative organization on urban transport in developing countries. CODATU's mission is to build capacity in the fields of urban transport and mobility in developing countries. It does this in the believe that in order to create economically, financially and socially sustainable urban mobility, the first need to be fulfilled is that for an enabling environment (legal, institutional and financial framework), and institutional and human resources capacities in developing countries. CODATU aims to fulfil its mission through, amongst others, the stimulation of:
- transfer of knowledge and experiences (North-South as well as South-South);
- applied research and research capacity building in developing countries;
- human resources development.
The CODATU Conferences began in 1980 in Dakar and have since been organized every 2-3 years : Caracas, Cairo, Jakarta, Sao Paulo, Tunis, New Delhi, Cape Town and Mexico City. CODATU is now recognized as a highly effective international source of impartial and authoritative information on urban transport policy, management and technology in developing countries.

Contact : Anyone interested in the SIG should contact :

Mr Wendell Cox

Wendell Cox Consultancy

PO Box 841

BELLEVILLE, ILLINOIS 62222 USA
Phone 1 : 1 618 632 8507
Phone 2 : 1 618 616 1363

SIG 7 Web site :

SIG 8 - Air Transport Research Society (ATRS)

Presentation

The Air transport Research Group (ATRG) was organized as a special interest group of the WCTR Society during the seventh Triennial WCTR Conference held in July, 1995 in Sydney Australia.

During the Initiation Meeting of the ATRG, the Networking Committee was formed in order to build up ATRG membership and to facilitate exchange of idea among the ATRG members in different parts of the world. The Networking Committee members have been working hard to encourage researchers, policy makers, and practitioners in the industries, research institutes, government agencies and academia to sign up for ATRG membership. So far, about 150 individuals from 25 countries have sign up to be ATRG. We would like to encourage others to join the ATRG. They can do so by sending a letter or e-mail to Tae H. Oum.

Contacts :

TAE H.OUM
The Air Transport Research Group
Faculty of Commerce
The University of British Columbia
VANCOUVER, B.C.,
V6T 1Z2 CANADA

Fax: 1 604 266 3747
Phone: 1 604 822 8320

Air Transport Research Society (ATRS)
Fax: 1 604 822-0635
Phone: 1 604 822-8254

• To help organize and expand the air transport related sessions at the WCTRS Conferences; to attract more people from airlines, airports, governments, research institutes and academia to the WCTR Society and its activities;
• To exchange Research ideas and results via more frequent symposia, mini-conferences or regional meetings than the WCTR Society can provide via its main Conferences, once every three years;
• To enhance research capabilities for truly multi-national and multi disciplinary issues on air transportation. For exemple, a good research on globalization of airline industry requires expertises in various disciplines (economics, engineering, law, management, operations, planning and others) as well as good knowledge of the international, regional and national institutions and regulations related to air transportation;
• To interact with various international institutions which deal with policy and/or infrastructure issues concerning international aviation. Examples include the International Air Transport Association, the International Air Transport Association, the International Civil Aviation Organization, the World Trade Organization, the the European Commission, the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council, etc.
• Eventually, to provide forums to facilitate exchange of ideas for forming multi-national research teams for airline research.

The 10th Air Transport Research Society Conference

May 26-28, 2006, Nagoya, Japan

ANNOUNCEMENT OF CONFERENCE AND CALL FOR PAPERS

Deadline for abstracts: January 31, 2006

The Air Transport Research Society (ATRS) would like to invite you to submit abstracts for papers to be presented at its 2006 annual conference to be held in Nagoya, Japan (26-28 May, 2006). You are welcome to submit papers on any air transport and related topics including economics, policy analysis, management, operations, technology, logistics/supply chain management, modeling, etc. The full Call for Papers can be found at www.atrsworld.org

Abstracts should be 100-200 words (1 page) in length, and should contain: the title; purpose of the paper; methodology; anticipated results or contributions to literature, industry or society. Please also make sure to provide name of author(s), affiliation, mailing address, phone and fax numbers, and e-mail address.

Abstracts/papers should be submitted to Prof. Hideyuki Kita (kita@sse.tottori-u.ac.jp), cc to Mr.Justin Beaudoin, ATRS Administrator (conference@atrsworld.org).

The following deadlines apply :
- Abstract submission: January 31, 2006
- Notification of acceptance of abstract: February 15-28, 2006
- Completed paper due: April 30, 2006

Nature of ATRS Conferences :
The ATRS annual conference includes participation from all facets of the aviation industry: airlines, airports, ATC, aerospace, government officials, consultants and academics. In addition to paper presentations, the conference will also offer invited keynote speakers from industry and a panel session on current and critical issues facing the industry.

Nagoya Conference Committee:

Prof. Hideo NAKAMURA – Chair, the ATRS 2006 Organizing Committee

Prof. Yoshitsugu HAYASHI – Chair, the Executive Committee (Overall Coordinator)

Prof. Hirotaka Yamauchi – Deputy Chair, the Executive Committee
Prof. Hideyuki KITA – Chief Secretary, the Executive Committee, responsible for Scientific matters (refereeing, papers, etc.)

Prof. Eizo HIDESHIMA – Deputy Secretary, the Executive Committee, responsible for Local logistics and finance matters

Conference Registration :
The conference registration form is available at www.atrsworld.org. Be sure to register by April 30, 2006 for a reduced early registration rate.

Contact Information:
Please direct any inquiries about the conference to Justin Beaudoin, ATRS Administrator, at conference@atrsworld.org. More information can be found at www.atrsworld.org, including the full Call for Papers, the Registration Form, and information regarding past conferences.

Contacts of the SIG :

Professor Tae H. Oum
President, ATRS
University of British Columbia, Canada

Ms. Karen Jensen

SIG 8 Web site :

www.atrsworld.org

SIG 9 - Urban goods movement

Presentation

At the 7th WCTR Conference in Sydney a suggestion for the formation of a Special Interest Group in Urban Goods Movement was raised by a number of conference delegates. The valuable exchange of freight expertise and discussion which took place at the Conference highlighted a need to facilitate this process.
Since the aim of the SIG is to provide opportunities for exchange of technical expertise and new ideas about urban goods movement, and provide a forum for innovations in urban freight research, it seemed to be a good idea that a SIG be formed in this area. Issues considered by the group include:

• Data collection - sources and best practice;
• GIS frameworks and freight data;
• Environmental effects, e.g. emissions and air quality;
• Intermodalism;
• Innovations in modeling - regional, tactical, strategic, impact models;
• Implications of government planning and policy - e.g. successful examples; and Investigation of interoperability (e.g. Internet, EDI protocols, ITS)
  This is only a sample of topics and as with other professional groups, suggestions are encouraged from the SIG members.
  

Professor Ken Ogden was chair of the SIG from its inception until 2000 when the role was taken on by Professor Michael Browne (University of Westminster UK). Since the inception of the SIG interest in the topic has grown significantly and there are now a number of active groups and networks working in this area.

Very successful sessions were held at the 8th, 9th and 10th WCTR Conference in Antwerp, Seoul and Istanbul. members of the SIG have also contributed to other initiatives such as the OECD Report on Urban Goods Movement.

Anyone wishing to join the SIG should contact the Chair.

Contact :

Chair : Professor Michael Browne
University of Westminster
35 Marylebone Road, London NW1 5LSUK
Tel: 44 (0)20 7911 5154 Fax: 44 (0)20 7911 5057
email: m.browne@westminster.ac.uk

SIG 10 - Urban Transport Policy Instruments

Presentation

This SIG was launched at the 9th WCTR in Seoul, focusing on urban transport policy instruments. Its principal objectives are to:

• collate experience on the performance of urban transport policy instruments;
• establish good practice in the evaluation of such instruments;
• develop a research programme to enhance understanding of the design, implementation and performance of such instruments; and
• encourage the development of interactive learning methods in the subject area for students, practitioners and decision makers.

These objectives will be reviewed and expanded from time to time in light of SIG members' interests.

Membership

Membership is open to any academic or practitioner with an interest in the subject area. Anyone interested in joining is invited to contact the author at the address below.

An International Knowledgebase

An internet-based international Knowledgebase is being developed on a not-for-profit basis, as an aid to the academic and professional community. The intention is that it will provide an regularly updated compendium of academics’ and practitioners’ understanding of the performance of over 70 policy instruments, based on international experience. Material is presented in multimedia format, allowing users to probe for information at the level of detail which they require. The structure of the Knowledgebase allows users to assess the contribution of a given policy instrument in different contexts and against different policy objectives. Contributions from those with experience with specific policy instruments are welcomed. Centralized management of the knowledgebase is intended to iensure that the data incorporated are of high quality.

SIG members are encouraged to participate in the development and use of the Knowledgebase. It is envisaged that its ongoing development will help in formulating and updating the research agenda of the SIG, by identifying gaps in our knowledge of the performance of specific policy instruments, demonstrating the need for a better understanding of factors affecting transferability of performance, and highlighting enhancements in the procedures for evaluating performance. The Knowledgebase may also have a role in developing interactive learning methods in the subject area, and SIG members with an interest in this field will be encouraged to form an educational sub-group.

Other activities

The SIG hosted an inaugural conference in Leeds in July 2002, many papers from which were published in a special issue of Transport Policy. It sponsored three tracks and twelve sessions at the 10th World Conference in Istanbul, and will publish a special issue of selected papers from that conference in Transport Policy in 2006.

The SIG will sponsor a series of tracks and sessions at the 11th World Conference in Berkeley. SIG members are encouraged to submit abstracts, session proposals, or both.

Management

The SIG is currently being managed by the Institute for Transport Studies at the University of Leeds Please do not hesitate to contact me at the address below if you have any suggestions for the effective running of this SIG. I look forward to meeting interested members at the Berkeley Conference in June 2007.

Contact :

Professor Tony May
Institute for Transport Studies
University of Leeds
Leeds LS2 9JT

a.d.may@its.leeds.ac.uk

SIG 11 - Transport and the Environment

Presentation

The Special Interest Group on Transport and the Environment is the youngest SIG which was established at the WCTR Seoul in 2001. It aims at seeking for the ways to establish effective mechanisms for mitigating environmental degradation due to transport in international domain. For this following topics may be examined: a) Comparing the emission of greenhouse gas and air pollution between countries and cities b) Diagnosing urban transport and its resulting global and local environmental degradation and prescribing countermeasure policies, and developing an evaluation system of their performance. c) Providing scientific instruments for evaluation of international mechanism such as Fund for environmentally sustainable transport and the methods to collect its financial resources.

Contact :

Chair: Professor Yoshitsugu Hayashi
Graduate School of Environmental
Studies, Nagoya University Tel: +81-52-789-2772, Fax: +81-52-789-3837,
Email: yhayashi@genv.nagoya-u.ac.jp