Jennifer Dill, PhD
Director
Professor, Nohad A. Toulan School of Urban Studies and Planning
503-725-5173 | jdill@pdx.edu
https://jenniferdill.net/
Twitter | TREC Researcher Profile

Dr. Jennifer Dill is a professor in the Nohad A. Toulan School of Urban Studies and Planning at Portland State University (PSU) and Director of the Transportation Research and Education Center (TREC) at PSU. TREC houses the National Institute for Transportation and Communities (NITC), which she also directs. NITC is a national university transportation center funded by the US Department of Transportation focusing on improving mobility for people and goods to build stronger communities. Dr. Dill also serves on the Board of Trustees for the TransitCenter, a New York-based foundation that works to improve public transit in cities across the U.S.

Professor Dill is an internationally known scholar researching the relationships between transportation, land use, health and the environment, focusing on active transportation. Before entering academia, Professor Dill worked as an environmental and transportation planner in California. That experience motivates her teaching and research, which aims to inform practice and policy. She has published extensively in peer-review journals and has served as principal investigator or co-PI on over $4.3M in research projects and over $28M in federal center funding. Her research has been covered by Wired, Governing, USA Today, the PBS NewsHour, Here and Now, Marketplace and the Atlantic. She has served on and chaired Transportation Research Board committees and is on the editorial boards of the Journal of Transportation and Health, Transportation Research Record and the Journal of Transportation and Land Use.

Dr. Dill has a Ph.D. in City and Regional Planning from UC Berkeley, an MA in Urban Planning from UCLA, and a BS in Environmental Policy Analysis and Planning from UC Davis. She is also an aluma of the Eno Future Leaders program.

Becca Bornstein

Events & Office Coordinator

503-725-2896 | brebecca@pdx.edu

Rebecca is the Events & Office Coordinator for TREC, providing administrative support and managing logistics for TREC's events. She has a background in creative writing, and holds an M.F.A. from North Carolina State University. When she's not working, she likes to spend time reading and writing poetry, riding her bicycle, and snuggling with her cat. 

Basem Elazzabi, PhD
Senior Research Associate
elazzabi@pdx.edu

Basem is the head of programming and development for the PORTAL and BikePed Portal projects at TREC. He is responsible for maintaining and developing the database and the infrastructure of both projects. He also does various data analysis and visualization tasks. Basem received a PhD in Computer Science from Portland State University with a focus in database and data analysis. He also received his BS in Computer Science also from Portland State University. He has almost 20 years of experience in system analysis and development. His main interests are database systems, data analysis, distributed systems, and big data. His main research topics focus on how to facilitate data analysis for typical and non-technical data analysts. One of the main research topics that he works on is how to build the next generation data-analysis ecosystem in which institutions (government and private) can easily store their massive data and have easy access to data analysis tools to support and improve data-driven decision making.

Lacey Friedly
Communications Coordinator
503-725-8545 | rlacey@pdx.edu

Lacey is the communications coordinator for TREC. She connects with researchers, writes articles, and documents (through pictures, videos, and model towns) the value of the transportation research being done at TREC and through the NITC program. Before TREC, Lacey was the acquisitions editor for Dark Discoveries magazine. She also managed the editing department at Ooligan Press, Portland State University's student-run publishing house. She graduated from PSU in 2013 with a master's in book publishing. In her spare time Lacey enjoys swimming, reading, and making stop-motion animation videos. she/her/hers

Jackie Krantz
Communications Assistant
jkrantz@pdx.edu

Jackie Krantz supports TREC communications including social media, graphic design, and copywriting, as well as disseminating results of research published by the National Institute for Transportation and Communities (NITC), a program of TREC.

Tammy Lee, PhD
Transportation Data Program Administrator
503-725-2884 | leetam@pdx.edu

Tammy is working on a variety of projects for TREC, including documentation, data synthesis, analysis, and visualization supporting ongoing work with PORTAL and Bike-Ped Portal. Tammy received a BS in Genetics & Plant Biology from UC Berkeley before earning a PhD in Environmental and Natural Resource Sciences from WSU. Prior to joining TREC she worked as a data scientist for a political digital media consulting firm. When not working she's either hiding in the forest or experimenting in the kitchen.

John MacArthur
Sustainable Transportation Program Manager
503-725-2866 | jhmacart@pdx.edu
Twitter | TREC Researcher Profile

Mr. John MacArthur is the Sustainable Transportation Program Manager at TREC at Portland State University and an instructor in civil and environmental engineering, teaching on new & emerging technologies in transportation. He is active in research related to sustainable and equitable transportation, particularly in the areas of emerging tech such as e-bikes, bike share, transit, and the relationship between transportation and public health. Mr. MacArthur is the Section Chair for Transportation Research Board’s AME00 Transportation and Society and a member of Innovative Public Transportation Services and Technologies (AP020). He received his BS in Civil Engineering from Lehigh University and a MS in Environmental Health Sciences from the School of Public Health at the University of Michigan.

Nathan McNeil

Research Associate

503-725-8581 | nmcneil@pdx.edu

Twitter | Researcher Profile

Nathan McNeil is a Research Associate at Portland State University's Center for Urban Studies. He conducts research on impacts of active transportation and transit equity, on new bicycle infrastructure and programs on travel behavior and attitudes towards cycling, on shared-use mobility programs including carsharing and bike-share, and on the connection between land-use and transportation. He was Co-Principal Investigator on recent national studies of bike share equity (Breaking Barrier to Bike Share and National Scan of Bike Share Equity Programs) and of protected bike lane implementations (Lessons from the Green Lanes). Nathan received a master of urban and regional planning from Portland State University (PSU) and studied history at Columbia University as an undergraduate. Prior to PSU, Nathan worked for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority in New York City as a performance auditor where he evaluated capital programs and contractors.

We inform transportation decision making through research, building the capacity of the transportation workforce, supporting the education of transportation professionals, and engaging students in research. 

The Transportation Research and Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University (PSU) is an interdisciplinary center that elevates the voices and expertise of a wide range of backgrounds to provide transportation insight for vibrant communities. We support collaborative research and education programs for our faculty, partners, community members, and students. 

TREC is home to the U.S. DOT funded National Institute for Transportation and Communities (NITC), the Initiative for Bicycle and Pedestrian Innovation (IBPI), PORTAL, BikePed Portal, and other transportation grants and programs. We produce impactful research for transportation decision makers, expand the diversity and capacity of the workforce, and engage students and professionals through education and participation in research. Learn more about our transportation research and education programs.

Annual Report

For more details about TREC's research and education programs, see the 2022 TREC Annual Report.

Our History at Portland State University

As Oregon's only urban public global research university, Portland State University offers tremendous opportunity to nearly 28,000 students from all backgrounds. Our mission to "Let Knowledge Serve the City" reflects our dedication to finding creative, sustainable solutions to local and global problems. In 1966, Dr. Walter H. Kramer founded the first transportation studies center in the Department of Marketing. After decades of investment in PSU's transportation studies, our faculty and staff expertise earned PSU a USDOT-funded a regional university transportation center (UTC) from 2006 - 2014. We have successfully competed for more federal grants and currently lead the National Institute for Transportation and Communities program– one of seven national university transportation centers. Our center and staff have grown far beyond the initial UTC grants, and now encompass a wide variety of programs.

The Ann Niles Active Transportation Lecture, first established by an endowment from Ann Niles in 2011, is a unique opportunity to bring world-class thinkers on pedestrian and bicycle issues to PSU and our local community. The annual lecture serves as a legacy to Ann Niles who was a strong advocate for livable neighborhoods and safer pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure, and served on many transportation-focused boards and committees in Portland. The Ann Niles speakers offer a fresh perspective and driving passion for safe, healthy, and sustainable active transportation. By promoting dialogue across disciplines and interests, this lecture series supports PSU's mission to "let knowledge serve the city."

Since 2007, IBPI has supported the next generation of bicycle and pedestrian professionals through two scholarships for PSU students who go above and beyond to advance active transportation design, programs, and community engagement practices: IBPI Active Transportation Scholarship and the IBPI Excellence in Active Transportation. All 34 of our past IBPI scholars have professions in active transportation, building the healthy, safe, and active future that we want to see.

The Innovation in Active Transportation Endowed Scholarship was begun through the generous donation of a local philanthropist and several local firms, and you can help us fund the future of active transportation with your donation!

We support people at every stage in their transportation education pursuits. Through our PSU faculty, partners, and TREC program staff we offer skills and knowledge for a career-ready transportation workforce and community partnerships.

Lifelong Learning

We host in-person and online events, largely free to the public, to educate current transportation professionals and community members:

• Professional development events: Since 2000 we have invited the public to join us at PSU for our Friday Transportation Seminar series featuring local and visiting transportation experts. We also host monthly webinars on research from our U.S. DOT funded NITC program, a transportation data webinar series, bicycle and pedestrian design training, annual summit, workshops, and active transportation lecture series.
• PSU Graduate Certificate in Transportation: Through the Maseeh College of Engineering and Computer Science and College of Urban and Public Affairs, Portland State offers a 21 credit transportation graduate certificate program.
• Portland Traffic and Transportation Class at PSU: Designed for community members seeking empowerment in transportation concepts and language to better advocate for the change they want to see. Held in partnership between PSU and the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) since 1991, this fall class is open to PSU students as well as for free for the general public.

University Students

Our students conduct cutting-edge research under the guidance of the world’s foremost transportation research faculty in planning and engineering. With an emphasis on learning by doing, students work on real transportation system projects with partners in our community. These partnerships lead to internships and rewarding careers after graduation. 

Outside of the classroom, we also support programming and funding for the STEP transportation student group, annual scholarships, and our summer TURF undergraduate research program. Learn more about studying transportation at PSU.

K-12 Students

Sparking an interest in transportation can start early, and we are always looking for ways to engage students in transportation before they reach college. Through nationally-funded research, we support new STEM curriculum and programs that introduce middle- and high-school students to transportation concepts and careers. We're best known for our annual summer transportation camp offered for free to Oregon high schoolers. Learn more about our K-12 transportation programs.

Better Block PSU is a partnership program between the volunteer-led group Better Block PDX and PSU - encouraging everyone to imagine what spaces could be when they are designed for people. Every year local community partners and advocates submit their project ideas to be considered for the university pathway program. These projects promote equitable placemaking, community building and empowerment, and active transportation advocacy. 

Integrated into PSU planning and engineering classes, PSU students support community members with the technical aspects of infrastructure improvements–elevating and materializing their ideas by developing plans, designs, and engineering concepts. It’s a shift from the status quo with a ground-up approach, and their transportation expertise can help community members in navigating the permit process or proposing informed solutions to the city.

The Initiative for Bicycle and Pedestrian Innovation (IBPI) program advances active transportation research and design for professionals, educators, and university students through training, curriculum development and scholarships. 

Founded in 2007, we work closely with PSU faculty in urban studies and planning and civil engineering to conduct interdisciplinary research and integrate bicycle and pedestrian topics into our university courses and support the next generation of professionals. Our location in Portland, Oregon – a national leader in multimodal travel – provides the ideal environment to teach safe, convenient and accessible active transportation and promote a culture of walking and biking.

Data-driven policy and strategy are critical to meeting transportation goals. To that end, we’ve focused our research efforts on filling gaps in data and education. In addition to hosting a quarterly transportation data webinar series, we house two national data clearinghouses – PORTAL and BikePed Portal – aimed at making transportation data more easily accessible to researchers and practitioners.

PORTAL

PORTAL provides a centralized, electronic database that facilitates the collection, archiving, and sharing of transportation data and information for public agencies. The data stored in PORTAL includes 20-second granularity loop detector data from freeways in the Portland-Vancouver metropolitan region, arterial signal data, travel time data, weather data, incident data, VAS/VMS message data, truck volumes, transit data, and arterial signal data.

BikePed Portal

BikePed Portal, a national non-motorized count data archive, provides a centralized standard count database for public agencies, researchers, educators, and other curious members of the public to view and download bicycle and pedestrian count data. It includes automated and manual counts from across the country, and supports screenline and turning movement counts.

We are the lead campus of the National Institute for Transportation and Communities (NITC) — one of seven national University Transportation Centers (UTC's) funded by the U.S. Department of Transportation. We pursue our theme, improving mobility of people and goods to build strong communities, through research, education and technology transfer in conjunction with our partner universities: University of Oregon, Oregon Institute of Technology, University of Utah and new partners University of Arizona and University of Texas at Arlington.

We release new research monthly in our NITC newsletter, and offer monthly NITC webinars that deep dive into one of the latest projects. Established in 2009, we have hosted an annual gathering with our partners to connect practitioners and researchers with NITC research at the Transportation and Communities Summit.

Sparking an interest in transportation can start early, and we are always looking for ways to engage students in transportation before they reach college.

In recent years, many organizations are seeking to increase interest in careers in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) through creative engagement. Through nationally-funded research, we support new curriculum and programs that introduce middle- and high-school students to transportation concepts and careers. Some of those programs include:

• Annual summer transportation camps for Oregon high schoolers
• GIS Mapping workshop for Oregon middle schoolers
• Innovative transportation curriculum modules for your classroom
• Teaching at the Transportation YOU annual summit in D.C.
• Funding and developing curriculum through our U.S. DOT supported program the National Institute for Transportation and Communities

Transportation is an interdisciplinary industry, and it needs the diversity of perspectives and lived experiences in the workforce to address mobility issues our communities face. To that end, we seek to increase the number of women and students of color in transportation-focused degree programs by creating a welcoming and engaging space for them early on.

 

Get updates on K-12 programs and events

Free Summer Transportation Camps for Oregon High Schoolers

Hosted at Portland State University every year since 2015 - our transportation camp, free and open to any Oregon student entering the 9–12 grade, offer an immersive introduction to transportation careers and the workings of transportation systems in Portland. Students will work in groups to solve a real-world transportation problem, develop data collection and STEM skills, and go on daily field trips.

Each summer the camp has adapted to fit the needs of the program that year (length, online vs. in-person, day camp vs. residential, girls only vs. all genders). Learn more about our summer high school camps here, and stay tuned for details about 2022.

Teach Transportation in Your Classroom: K-12 Curriculum

How Walkable is Your Neighborhood?

Originally designed by TREC staff for our annual summer high school camps, we're now offering this set of four modules "How Walkable is Your Neighborhood?" for any educator to teach in their classroom. No transportation background required!

These modules will provide students with creative ways of observing transportation systems in their neighborhoods through collecting pedestrian data, critically evaluating accessibility, and learning about livable communities. They will gain a deeper understanding of how people move through their community, and whether the transportation in their community is designed with the needs of all people in mind. Students will take this critical lens into their final projects where they will propose a vision for increasing transportation safety, accessibility, and livability in their community. 

The four consecutive modules in this toolkit are meant to be facilitated in sequence with 3-5 days in between, as they build upon each other. The modules can be adapted as stand alone lessons if needed. Educator instructions are provided, as well as printable student instructions:

• Module 1: Observations by Foot
• Module 2: Collecting the Data
• Module 3: Crossing at the Intersection
• Module 4: Final Project
• Bonus Optional Activities: Transit Budgeting; Transportation Bingo
• The full curriculum set can be downloaded here. 

Big and Awesome Bridges of Portland and Vancouver

Through funding from the U.S. DOT's UTC program, in 2014 we helped sponsor the development of this amazing, local resource for teachers and young readers: Big and Awesome Bridges of Portland and Vancouver book. It’s got bridge history, STEM knowledge, hands-on activities, and interviews with staff at Oregon DOT, Washington DOT, Multnomah and more. Know a budding bridge aficionado in your life? They need this book!

New to 2021: it’s now also available as an e-book!

From the publisher: “The big & awesome bridges of Portland & Vancouver is a book that gets young people excited about science and engineering and provides teachers a comprehensive resource for developing engaging elementary school units of study, all through an exploration of one of the most diverse and historic collections of big river bridges in the world."