Master’s thesis: New York subway network as an alternative to freight transport

Student Pouria Bacher (master’s program in Innovation and Technology Management) spent nine months at Columbia University in New York to research new green transportation methods with a Marshall Plan Scholarship for his master’s thesis “Green Sub-Transportation”.

Bacher was supervised by program director Maximilian Lackner and Martina Ortbauer (Master’s program director Ecotoxicology & Environmental Management), and Professor Jacqueline M. Klopp in New York (Director / Research Scholar at the “Center for Sustainable Urban Development”) assisted with the research project.

Pouria Bacher investigated new ways to use the New York City subway network as an alternative way to transport goods and dispose of waste. Goods can be transported quickly and efficiently on the subway network, helping to reduce traffic, CO2 emissions and environmental pollution.

Improving the health of the urban population

The challenges here lie in logistics: transport times, duration of unloading and loading, intervals and operating costs. According to calculations, one metro train could replace 77 small loading trucks in one trip. This could relieve the climate and improve the health of the city’s population. These results would probably also be interesting for other cities, as this would lead to less traffic in the cities and faster transport.

It would also improve the image of affected cities in the long term. Although New York City has a population of 8.5 million, it is often seen as a leader in sustainability and aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 80 percent by 2050.

(Read more: www.nyc.gov)

Pouria Bacher’s ideas earned him 2nd place at the Innovation Challenge at Manhattan College, along with his colleagues, and $2,500.

We interviewed Pouria Bacher about his time in New York:

Pouria, how did you come to write your master’s thesis?

Pouria Bacher: In current research, there are an increasing number of studies and projects investigating the possibility of using public transportation such as subways to transport people. However, it has been noted that there has not yet been a comprehensive case study that has examined whether this system is also suitable for freight transportation. With this in mind, I identified a few key research gaps and conducted my own investigation. This was to evaluate the suitability of public transport for parcel transportation and to demonstrate the benefits of this idea. Through my research, I have thus made an important contribution to the advancement of alternative and sustainable solutions in the field of parcel delivery.

How did you experience your time in NYC?

Pouria Bacher: Living in New York City as a student is a unique and exciting experience that you wouldn’t want to miss. It’s incredible how fantastic education, cultural diversity, sightseeing, and nightlife are. I was also able to have conversations with world-renowned CEOs, such as the CEO of UBER, Mr. Khosroshahi.

Did the Marshall Plan scholarship help?

Pouria Bacher: Without the Marshall Plan scholarship, it would have been very difficult to finance and organize a semester abroad in NYC.

What are your plans for the future?

Pouria Bacher: To continue exploring the world and prepare for my PhD studies.

At the picture: Pouria Bacher