Rail and Transit Program
Developing innovative research and technology solutions to improve the safety, resiliency, and efficiency of the nation's rail and transit systems.
Lab Overview
Located along the Northeast Corridor, Rutgers CAIT conducts real-world research that benefits commuters, businesses, and the rail and transit industry.
Dr. Xiang Liu
Lab Director & ProfessorDr. Xiang Liu is the Director of the Rutgers Rail and Transit Program and a Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Dr. Liu's research focuses on artificial intelligence (AI), big data, and automation technologies for improving rail operational safety and efficiency. Dr. Liu has published over 100 papers in peer-reviewed journals and international conferences. Dr. Liu’s rail & transit research has been supported by a variety of public and private sectors in the United States. Dr. Liu is the Associate Editor for the Journal of Rail Transport Planning & Management, and Journal of Smart and Resilient Transportation. Dr. Liu has received four “Best Paper” awards from the Transportation Research Board (TRB), the “Educator of the Year 2017” Award, and the “Researcher of the Year 2018”, both in New Jersey. In 2018, he received a “Rising Star” award from the Progressive Railroading magazine. Dr. Liu currently teaches several railroad courses at Rutgers. He is a Faculty Advisor to Rutgers AREMA Student Chapter. In 2019, he received the Young Alumnus Achievement Award from the Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. His students are employed across academia and industry, with placements at institutions such as Universtiy of Huston, Shanghai Jiaotong University, and companies such as Google, Meta, and Amazon.
Featured Research Programs
Railway Infrastructure Risk Management
This project develops an implementable risk management model for assessing track safety risk, in support of the optimization of track inspection and maintenance.
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Advanced Train Control Technologies and Risk
The objective of this research is to evaluate the safety benefit and cost and operational impact of implementing positive train control (PTC) under various operating scenarios, such as restricted speed operations.
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Intelligent Railroads, Safety and Security
The railway industry in stepping into the stage of the “Digital Railways,” which we call the Internet of Railway Things (IoRT).
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Railroad Big Data and Artificial Intelligence
This research develops advanced big data and artificial intelligence techniques to turn railroad big data into useful information that leads to risk-informed safety decisions.
Read MoreSponsors/Collaborators
We gratefully appreciate the support and collaboration from the following agencies or companies (alphabetically ordered):
- Association of American Railroads (AAR)
- Cambridge Systems (CS)
- DecisionTek Inc. (DT)
- Federal Railroad Administration (FRA)
- Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA)
- New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT)
- New Jersey Transit (NJT)
- Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA)
- Port Authority Trans-Hudson (PATH)
- Rutgers Center for Advanced Infrastructure and Transportation (CAIT)
- Rutgers Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE)
- Rutgers Research Council (RC)
- Rutgers School of Engineering (SOE)
- Transportation Technology Center Inc. (TTCI)
- US Department of Transportation. (USDOT)
Connect With Our Lab
For industry inquiries, collaboration logistics, or to express interest in graduate student opportunities.
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