Mohammad Ilbeigi Receives $252,103 NSF Award
The award will fund research to develop real-time monitoring of traffic conditions during natural disasters
Dr. Mohammad Ilbeigi, Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Ocean Engineering, was recently awarded a National Science Foundation (NSF) Award in the amount of $252,103. His project, titled “Collaborative Research: A Dynamic Disruption Prediction System for Transportation Networks at a Road-Segment Level of Granularity” will test the feasibility of a unique framework that monitors road transportation networks during extreme events in real-time and predicts disruptions.
Natural disasters have frequently caused unexpected gridlocks on roadways, adversely affecting emergency management processes such as evacuations, rescue, and recovery operations. The ability to predict traffic disruptions is vital for a successful emergency management system, but emergency management processes currently lack the ability to monitor networks in real-time.
With this research project, Ilbeigi aims to conduct fundamental research necessary to create a methodology and framework that dynamically predicts disruptions in road transportation networks based on unusual traffic patterns detected during extreme events, like natural disasters. The method would offer a holistic network approach with a road segment level of granularity that, while it considers the entire network, is also able to monitor and predict traffic flow in each road segment.
Ilbeigi hopes that the outcomes of this project will set the stage for the development of proactive emergency management systems, resulting in more efficient and successful rescue and recovery operations.
As part of the project, Ilbeigi envisions creating educational and outreach efforts that integrate with undergraduate and graduate courses. The grant will also provide an opportunity for project-based learning for K-12, undergraduate, and graduate students, especially minorities and under-represented groups.
Learn more about the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Ocean Engineering at Stevens:
Civil, Environmental and Ocean Engineering Undergraduate Programs
Civil, Environmental and Ocean Engineering Graduate Programs