Events

Transportation Data & Applications
Eric Plosky
In person or virtual [link provided after registering]

This IAP activity addresses how we can use data to improve the human components of transportation systems: decision-driven data, not just "data-driven decisions." Because data isn't just a question of technology: practitioners need to know what it can do and what it can't, where it comes from and why, and who owns it. How is it generated? How can it be used for decision-making? What skills are needed? What do different segments of society – the public sector, the private sector, individual travelers – need to do? What are the challenges? What can be learned from history, and from other disciplines?

This activity is designed to fill the gap between existing course offerings that cover technical topics (like data analysis, modeling, visualization, and optimization) and equity/social-justice issues. The goal is to provide students an opportunity to develop their own understanding of transportation data and its applications, so that they can give full consideration to the technical and social approaches covered in other classes.

A single focus question will be presented as a case study: how many transportation fatalities occurred in the U.S. last year? Considering this question will require going beyond simple data crunching to thoughtful “human” analysis, including factors such as those above. The activity will demonstrate the difficulties of presenting an authoritative answer, and use this example to show that students’ critical application of understanding the entire data lifecycle is key to approaching professional challenges in transportation.

To register: email Eric Plosky eplosky@gmail.com