TCNJ student Bryan Remache-Patino and Associate Professor in the Department of Civil Engineering Dr. Thomas Brennan explored quantifying the impact of COVID-19 on traffic patterns by using probe vehicle data sets in the new Journal of Modern Mobility Systems. Remache-Patino and Dr. Brennan conducted preliminary research assessing 500k speed records to characterize speed patterns visually and numerically. Using this data set allows researchers to analyze changes in traffic patterns.
For Bryan, this was a rewarding learning experience through which he “discovered a love of working with data”. He’s also grateful for the opportunity to sharpen skills he’ll need ahead of applying to graduate school, including improving his writing of technical reports and producing graphics for academic publication.
Dr. Brennan is the Co-Chief editor of the new Journal of Modern Mobility Systems alongside his former mentor, Dr. Mohan Venigalla of George Mason University. They launched this journal to allow fast publication of cutting edge developments in modern mobility systems, turning around brief articles in three months or less, to fill the research gap that often exists in publishing full-length research articles in the top journals. Dr. Brennan values this speed noting that academics often have to wait over a year to get to publication. He relishes the opportunity to help researchers “publish short articles, get a citation link and…provide free information to academics and practitioners.” Dr. Brennan described the experience of developing a new journal as very “rewarding” as he learns the other side of the publication process; doing everything from learning to recruit board members and reviewers, to learning the right computer software for a smooth process from initial submission to publication.
You can find the Journal of Modern Mobility Systems here: https://journals.gmu.edu/index.php/jmms