Dear colleague

Applications are invited for PhD studentships available within the Transport
Studies Group, Loughborough University.  This request is part of a wider
invitation (e.g. www.jobs.ac.uk advertisement 6-11-06).  Fees will be paid 
at the UK/EU student rate, in addition to a £12,300 per annum tax free
stipend for living expenses.

Applicants should have a minimum of a 2.1 honours degree (or equivalent) in
a relevant discipline.  Further information on the Transport Studies Group
is available at
http://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/cv/research/groups/transport/index.html.

Applicants should complete the standard PhD application form available from
http://www.lboro.ac.uk/prospectus/pg/apply/index.html and submit with
supporting documents to: Ms Helen Newbold, Research Administrator,
Department of Civil and Building Engineering, Loughborough University,
Email: [log in to unmask]

Closing date: 30th November 2006

Details of four possible PhD transport research projects are below.  For
further information, feel free to contact Dr Tim Ryley
([log in to unmask]) or Dr Mohammed Quddus ([log in to unmask]).


1. Travel behaviour change in response to sustainable transport policy
Dr T.J.Ryley

It is important to understand individual travel choices more fully, so that
behavioural change towards sustainable transport modes can be encouraged.
Primarily using stated preference techniques, the research could focus on a
particular transport mode (e.g. air travel, train travel, cycling) or a
particular transport policy tool (e.g. road pricing, travel plan).

2. Future aviation developments
Dr T.J.Ryley

Air travel has increased dramatically over the past 30 years.  Although the
increase in demand has provided greater opportunities, there are
environmental challenges to ensure that the development of aviation is more
sustainable.  The research could focus on future demand for air travel, the
business strategy of a particular airline, the development of a particular
airport, or sustainable aviation solutions (e.g. emissions trading).

3. The association between road safety and traffic congestion
Dr M A Quddus

The relentless growth of motor vehicles imposes a serious challenge to the
government, the people, and the environment. This is primarily due to the
limited capacity of existing roads. In the UK, there were 25.2 millions
motor vehicles in 1994. This was increased to 28.9 millions in 2000, and
32.3 millions in 2004. As the UK economy grows, the demand for personal,
business, recreation, and shopping travels will certainly increase. 
Therefore, a significant growth in traffic over the next few decades is
expected. Therefore, one of the primary goals of transport policy is to
reduce congestion. All else equal, congestion reduction is seen to be a
desirable policy. However, it has been speculated that there may be an
inverse relation between congestion reduction and improved safety. The main
objective of this project would be to develop an association between road
safety and traffic congestion while controlling for other parameters
responsible for road casualties such as roadway characteristics and various
socio-demographic factors. In order to accomplish this, the following tasks
shall need  to be carried out:

- developing indices for estimating traffic congestion at a geographical
level (e.g., UK Wards or UK Super Output Areas)
- extracting road traffic casualties for those geographical areas from
STATS19 (a National Road Accident Database)
- extracting various road infrastructure parameters from UK spatial road
network data using GIS
- obtaining socio-demographic variables from the UK 2001 census data
- developing the relationship between road casualties and congestion using
advanced statistical models.

Datasets to be used in this project are already available to the Transport
Studies Group (TSG) at Loughborough University.

4. A hybrid map matching algorithm for intelligent transport systems (ITS)
applications
Dr M A Quddus

Map matching algorithms are used to integrate locational data from a
positioning system (e.g., GPS) with spatial road network data in order to
support the navigation functions of various ITS services such as road user
charging, fleet management, bus arrival information at bus stops, bus
priority at junctions, and various location based service (LBS). The
existing map matching algorithms have constraints and limitations to
satisfy user requirements. The main objective of this project is to develop
a hybrid map matching algorithm which can overcome those potential
constraints and limitations. The following tasks shall need to be carried
out:

- setting up user requirements for various ITS services in terms of
positioning accuracy and integrity
- reviewing of the literature on existing map matching algorithms to reveal
their constraints and limitations to satisfy user requirements
- developing an improved map matching algorithm  using a hybrid method
- testing and validation of the algorithm
- developing integrity and reliability of the algorithm

Kind regards
Tim

Dr Tim Ryley
Lecturer in Transport Studies
Transport Studies Group
Department of Civil and Building Engineering
Loughborough University, Leicestershire LE11 3TU
United Kingdom

Tel: +44 (0)1509 223422