Department / Institute: Department of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering (D-BAUG)
Call for Papers: Sustainable Built Environment Conference (SBE25)
We are thrilled to announce the Sustainable Built Environment Conference (SBE25), which will be held from June 25 to 27, 2025 in Zürich. The conference topic is “Shaping Tomorrow: Systems Thinking in the Built Environment”. Releasing over 40% of global greenhouse gas emissions and consuming over 40% of More
How Ukraine can rebuild its energy system
Researchers at ETH Zurich have been working with researchers from Ukraine and Germany to investigate how to rebuild Ukraine’s destroyed energy infrastructure based on renewable energy. They have determined that solar and wind energy would quickly deliver a distributed power supply system and prevent corruption. Article at the More
Overcoming challenges in cost-benefit analysis of urban cycling infrastructure
This paper explores the challenges in conducting Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) for urban cycling infrastructure. The authors discuss two key difficulties: determining the objective safety benefits and estimating the costs associated with implementing the infrastructure. To overcome these challenges, the authors conducted a study in Zürich, aiming to convert More
Cost Benefit Analysis of Cycling Infrastructure
Cost-benefit analysis is a tool frequently used in project appraisal to justify the implementation of infrastructures. Due to insufficient recorded data, the construction costs and safety benefits of urban bicycling infrastructure are difficult to estimate, weakening the appraisal and implementation of such projects. In this research, we conducted More
Equitable Urban Traffic Management Systems with Karma Congestion Pricing
Most cities do not charge for driving. Do you think that is fair? It causes externalities such as noise and pollution to residents and shops. In peak-hours of congestion, valuable life time, money, and fuel are wasted. Do you think driving in the city should be priced? Do More
“I find the entire mobility system fascinating”: An Interview with Eva Heinen
NSL Veranstaltungsplakat Herbstsemester 2024
Increasing realism in modelling energy losses in railway vehicles and their impact to energy-efficient train control
The reduction of energy consumption is an increasingly important topic of the railway system. Energy-efficient train control (EETC) is one solution, which refers to mathematically computing when to accelerate, which cruising speed to hold, how long one should coast over a suitable space, and when to brake.
Increasing Realism in Modelling Energy Losses in Railway Vehicles
Housing Precarity in Six European and North American Cities: Threatened by the Loss of a Safe, Stable, and Affordable Home
Problem, research strategy, and findings: Increasing numbers of urban dwellers face housing precarity in cities worldwide. We conceptualize housing precarity as a multidimensional phenomenon, using five different dimensions: 1) housing affordability, 2) tenure security, 3) housing satisfaction, 4) neighborhood quality, and 5) community cohesion.
Renewable energies in the field of tension between social demands
The Swiss energy system is set to undergo a significant transformation through the integration of photovoltaic (PV) and wind energy installations, as outlined in the Energy Strategy 2050. However, these installations impact public perception of the landscape and may lead to conflicts with various socio-economic or ecological interests. More
D-BAUG Urban Research Seminar
ETH RAUM Öffentliche Vorlesungsreihe
disP 60/1, March 2024
A Time-varying Shockwave Speed Model for Trajectory Reconstruction using Lagrangian and Eulerian Observations
Inference of detailed vehicle trajectories is crucial for applications such as traffic flow modeling, energy consumption estimation, and traffic flow optimization. Static sensors can provide only aggregated information, posing challenges in reconstructing individual vehicle trajectories.
Key Factors to Enhance Efficacy of 3D Digital Environments for Transformative Landscape and Urban Planning
The unprecedented expansion of digital technologies has led to a rapid increase in the development and application of 3D digital environments for landscape and urban planning in the past two decades. Considering the significant challenges in guiding human societies towards sustainability, these technologies must not only assist decision-makers More
Bicycle as a traffic mode: From microscopic cycling behavior to macroscopic bicycle flow
Cities allocate dedicated road space to bicycles in favor of active-mode road users. For urban environments with a mass bicycle volume, bicycle traffic congestion is likely to occur. Hence, a thorough understanding of bicycle traffic flow is necessary for the assessment of cycling infrastructure and the development of More
Comparative study of route choice models for cyclists
A Comprehensive Toolbox for Flood Risk Mitigation in Refugee Settlements
SPUR launches a comprehensive toolbox for flood risk mitigation in refugee settlements: www.humanitarian-risk.org. The toolbox includes a GIS tool to create flood risk maps and mitigation strategies, a compendium of flood risk mitigation measures and a participatory risk mapping methodology. We are thankful for the support of our More
NSL Forum & Cycling Research Board
Digital Twins for Europe’s Future Mobility 4 – 6 September 2024 | ETH Zürich, Hönggerberg, HIL E3 and HIT. Today’s design reflects the car-oriented consensus, which was formulated between the 1930’s and 1950’s and adopted around the world since then. The climate crisis challenges this orientation and asks More
Virtualizing Urban Transition
At a time of global anthropogenic paroxysms, initiatives for urban transition are multiplying to ensure quality and resilience of life in cities. In particular, public open space holds immense potential for rapid adaptation to mitigate the severe risks to human health arising from global warming, pollution and pandemics. More
Planungstools zur besseren Integration von Biodiversität und Ökosystemleistungen in raumrelevante Entscheidungen
Der Aktionsplan Biodiversität soll den Zustand der Biodiversität in der Schweiz verbessern. Ein wichtiger Faktor ist der Einbezug von Ökosystemleistungen/Biodiversität in Raumentscheidungen. In einem Bundesmandat wurde eine Übersicht zu Planungstools erstellt, die dabei helfen können. Es wurden planungsinvolvierte Personen interviewt, um Hindernisse und Nachfrage nach Planungstools zu identifizieren.
Adaptive Planning for Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure
Although a transition to electric vehicles (EVs) has potential to greatly reduce transportation-related greenhouse gas emissions, it faces significant challenges, including range anxiety and limitations in battery capacity. Effective long-term planning for EV charging infrastructure can overcome these barriers and increase the chances of widespread adoption.
«Die Raumplanung kann mit ihren Instrumenten einen wichtigen Beitrag zu mehr Wohnraum und lebenswerten Räumen beitragen.»
Damian Jerjen ist neu – nebst seinem Engagement am EspaceSuisse – als Professor of Practice beim NSL, ETH Zürich, in der Grundausbildung für die Raumplaner:innen tätig. Im Interview spricht er über die besten Strategien gegen die Wohnraumknappheit, das Gesetz über eine sichere Stromversorgung, das im Juni zur Abstimmung More
Drive Forward: Revolutionizing Traffic with Advanced Vehicle Trajectory Reconstruction
Understanding how vehicles move is crucial for safer, more coordinated, and smarter transportation systems. However, directly observing vehicle trajectories is impractical, posing a challenge to obtaining accurate trajectory data with limited sensing capabilities. We explore our innovative approach to vehicle trajectory reconstruction, reshaping the future of traffic management.
Creating inequality in access to public transit? Densification, gentrification, and displacement
Densification is a key concept in contemporary urban planning. Yet, there are widespread concerns about densification causing displacement and gentrification. This paper examines densification around train stations—a prevalent form of transit-oriented development (TOD) in cities with established public transit systems—in the Canton of Zurich, Switzerland.
What can cities do to promote acceptance of densification?
Swiss cities are more likely to accept densification when densification projects provide affordable housing and green spaces compared to densification that is implemented through reduced regulations for housing construction. By prioritizing a socio-ecological densification, extensive planning procedures and delays might be minimized. Read the article on ETH News.
Hybrid Summer School Synergic Urban Systems
disP 59/4, December 2023
Public Participation in Urban Planning
Public participation has become a widely used concept in the rhetoric and practice of planning, and an accepted approach in the formulation and implementation of spatial plans, urban policies, or development projects. Despite the widespread use of the concept in both theory and practice, there is however no More
Globale Modellierung des ländlichen Strassenverkehrs ausserhalb der Städte
Der Verkehr auf ländlichen Strassen ausserhalb der Städte kann erhebliche negative Auswirkungen auf die Ökologie und Umwelt von Natur- und Agrarlandschaften haben. Der Umfang dieser Auswirkungen kann jedoch nicht bestimmt werden, da in vielen Ländern keine Daten zum Verkehrsvolumen auf ländlichen Strassen verfügbar sind. Deshalb haben wir einen More
NSL Veranstaltungsplakat Frühjahrssemester 2024
Developing and Extending Status Prediction Models for Railway Tracks Based on On-Board Monitoring Data
Explainable Train Delay Propagation: A Graph Attention Network Approach
Time-to-Green Predictions for Fully-Actuated Signal Control Systems With Supervised Learning
Maintenance and Advanced Analytics in Railways
On-Board Monitoring techniques, defined as using commercial trains to monitor the track status, have garnered much attention recently. While data come in relatively low quality, OBM is a low-cost and efficient alternative to traditional monitoring methods. Thus, funded by the ETH Mobility Initiative project OMISM, this study checks More
Public Support for Participation in Local Development
Damian Jerjen named «Professor of Practice»
Damian Jerjen is currently Director of the Swiss association for spatial planning EspaceSuisse and Lecturer at ETH Zurich and other Swiss universities. He is an economist and spatial planner. He serves on various bodies, including the Council for Spatial Planning (ROR). At EspaceSuisse, he supports and brings together More
News from Regenerative Materials at ETH
How will the railway look like in 2050? A survey of experts on technologies, challenges and opportunities for the railway system
The railway system can fulfil society’s current and future transportation goals; compared to other transport modes, it does that with high energy, space and resource efficiency. It can deliver high-quality transport services, superior speed, safety and comfort to most competing modes. Nevertheless, its share of the total traffic More
How Will the Railway Look Like in 2050?
Envisioning a Cycling-centric Future: Urban Traffic Modeling and Management for a Bi-modal Network
Allocating dedicated road space to slow modes is considered an effective way toward a radical modal shift. By exploiting traffic flow theoretical knowledge, convenient models can be developed to help evaluate the influence of such a large-scale transformation on network traffic performance. Novel strategies for bi-modal urban traffic More
Stress Testing Transport Systems
Transportation systems are vital for economic and social development, yet are susceptible to disruptions caused by natural hazards, especially considering the adverse impacts of climate change on increasing the intensity of frequency of climatic hazards. To manage these risks effectively, stress testing, as a diagnostic tool, has shown More
CAS ETH in Zukunft der Raumentwicklung
Neue Ansätze in der Modellierung: «The German experiment with low flat rates for public transport. An economic and political evaluation»
Nachfragegetriebene ÖV-Systeme: «Lessons from the design of integrated on-demand transit systems in two cities»
Neue Ansätze in der Modellierung: «Best of both worlds: data driven models with behavioural realism and flexibility»
In Gedenken an Willy A. Schmid
Willy A. Schmid war von 1978 bis 2008 Professor für Landschafts- und Umweltplanung am Institut für Raum- und Landschaftsentwicklung (IRL), der heutigen Professur für Planung von Landschaft und Urbanen Systemen (PLUS) und Mitbegründer des Netzwerk Stadt und Landschaft (NSL) an der ETH Zürich. Er hat Generationen von Raum- und Landschaftsplaner:innen More