Professor Matthew Roorda
Matthew J. Roorda, Associate Professor, Ph.D. (Toronto), P. Eng.
ph 416-978-5976, fx 416-978-5054, email: roordam@ecf.utoronto.ca
Urban freight transportation, freight planning and operations, operation of multimodal freight facilities, firm behaviour, microsimulation modelling, freight and passenger travel survey methods, disaggregate choice models, passenger travel demand modelling.
Transportation Engineering and Planning
Welcome!
My research program covers both urban freight and passenger travel research initiatives. In urban freight, research is underway to develop the state of freight data in the Greater Toronto Area through data collection initiatives. This is an essential first step in developing behavioural models of decision-making by the various actors involved in the freight system including shippers, carriers, logistics firms, etc. Armed with a better understanding of such behaviour, we are developing forecasting models of commercial vehicle movements, that are sensitive to government policy, changes in logistics processes and changes in the global and regional economy.
Passenger travel initiatives are also well underway, with an emphasis on developing improved methods for representing human behaviour that leads to travel on urban roadways, on transit systems, and by other modes such as cycling and walking. The emphasis of this research includes activity based methods of forecasting travel demand, understanding the short and long term dynamics of travel behaviour, and the linkages between short-term activity scheduling decisions and longer term household decisions such as car ownership and residential location. Microsimulation of traffic, emissions and exposure to vehicle pollutants is another research thrust.
The research is both exciting and challenging. There is a strong and on-going need for such analysis tools and data to analyze the impacts of many policy decisions being made by our government representatives, and by industry every day. I am confident that the research is and will continue to influence those decisions, to result in a more sustainable, efficient and equitable urban transportation system.
Titles and Professional Affiliations
Licensed Professional Engineer, Professional Engineers of Ontario (PEO)
Member, Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE)
Member, Transportation Research Board Committees (ADB10, ABJ40, ATO15)
Member, International Association of Travel Behaviour Research (IATBR)
Member, Canadian Transportation Research Forum (CTRF)