AAR launches freight-rail research consortium

The Association of American Railroads (AAR) yesterday launched an academic freight-rail research consortium designed to strengthen the industry's long-term research and analytical capabilities through collaborative, data-driven and policy research.

Through the consortium, AAR has established new research partnerships with three academic institutions and is expanding its longstanding relationship with the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), AAR officials said in a press release. The consortium brings together leaders in economics, transportation, logistics, engineering and public policy, they added.

AAR has partnered with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Mobility Initiative, an interdisciplinary effort that examines the movement of people and goods and the systems that support economic activity. Research will focus on freight rail's role in supply chain resilience, economic performance the goods movement.

At the University of California, Berkeley, AAR has established a partnership with the university's Institute of Transportation Studies. There, AAR will support research on freight demand, transportation economics, network performance, modal competition and the economic value of freight rail.

The third new partnership is with the Rutgers University Rail and Transit Program. The collaboration will support research on freight transportation, rail policy and the responsible application of artificial intelligence to improve industry performance, strengthen safety and advance innovation.

Building on its longstanding collaboration with the UIUC Rail Transportation and Engineering Center (RailTEC), AAR aims to strengthen the field of rail economics and transportation research by creating opportunities for researchers, policymakers and industry leaders to connect and exchange ideas.

"By bringing together leading universities, industry experts and policymakers, we're investing in the ideas, evidence and manpower that will help the freight-rail industry better anticipate change, inform public policy and solve the complex challenges of the future," said Rand Ghayad, AAR chief economist and senior vice president of policy and economics.