Emilio Frazzoli new chairperson of the Center for Sustainable Future Mobility
Professor Emilio Frazzoli is the new chairperson of the center and takes over from Professor Kay Axhausen. Professor Martin Raubal will be his deputy in this role.
The Center for Sustainable Future Mobility (CSFM) brings together and coordinates research efforts of around 40 research groups from 8 different departments at ETH Zurich, Empa, and PSI. It contributes to addressing the grand challenges of the transport sector by providing research-based solutions for the design and implementation of sustainable transport systems that are safe, reliable, fast, socially desirable, environmentally friendly, and cost efficient.
The center is jointly run by the Departments of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering (D-BAUG) and of Mechanical and Process Engineering (D-MAVT). It builds on the strategic partnership established with SBB, Siemens Mobility, and AMAG in 2018.
As initially agreed between the two hosting departments the CSFM's administrative location transitioned from D-BAUG to D-MAVT last July. At the same time, Professor Emilio Frazzoli became the new chairperson of the center. He takes over from Professor Kay Axhausen.
Professor Frazzoli is a member of the Institute for Dynamic Systems and Control (IDSC). His main research interests are in the area of planning and control of mobile robotic systems, with a particular emphasis on autonomous vehicles and transportation networks. In recent years, he has been particularly interested in developing new approaches for smart urban mobility. Together with the CSFM steering committee, he will lead the development of the Center and define its main directions.
Professor Martin Raubal will be the new deputy chairperson. He is a professor of Geoinformation Engineering. He has been involved in the center since its inception as a member of the steering committee. He is also a member of the Future Resilient Systems (FRS) management committee at the Singapore-ETH Centre (SEC). His research interests focus on spatial decision making for sustainability, with an emphasis on mobile geographic information systems and location-based services.
Professor Kay Axhausen, who became chairperson of the center following its formal approval two years ago, has been responsible for getting the center up and running and implementing the proposed organisational structure. An important aspect of these first two years of operation has been the integration of the Mobility Initiative into the structure of the new center.
Professor Axhausen will remain involved as a member of the steering committee and as a member of the CSFM until his retirement next year. He has played a major role in shaping transport research at ETH for decades. His farewell lecture is scheduled for 7 December 2023 and will be part of a three-day colloquium hosted by the NSL, bringing together many IVT alumni and relevant personalities in mobility research. We are very grateful for his dedication during this initial phase.