The Green Review

Universities play a crucial role in achieving a sustainable future, especially through their research. Considering this, we are excited to highlight individuals and groups at UNB that have dedicated their time to pursuing sustainability-related research.

In honour of UNB’s Research Celebration Week, we are proud to announce our newest Sustainability Research Champion is Dr. Trevor Hanson

Research project | Community Transportation Research Lab (CTRL)

Overview

CTRL brings several of my research interests under one theme to support age-friendly, accessible, and Active Transportation solutions that can be mobilized in communities, like small cities and towns, regions and rural areas.

We aim to lead in innovation and discovery in community transportation research in New Brunswick, with lessons that will be shared home and abroad, while also providing a forum for broader discussions about how various pieces of the transportation system can work together to achieve broader mobility goals.

Recently we partnered with the Southeast Regional Service Commission (SERSC) which has participation from 13 communities within Greater Moncton to help them as they look to plan for regional microtransit. We analyzed volunteer driver program data, transit and paratransit data, conducted surveys on accessible transportation, evaluated the potential of cellphone data for regional transportation planning, and are working on an Active Transportation data collection plan.

We are also looking at developing a health travel demand model to determine the impact of having to travel to access health in New Brunswick (NSERC and ResearchNB funding).

Over the summer we looked at what we could learn from studying transportation issues at UNB, like an analysis of transit data, the UNB commuter survey, and a parking pass study – I am becoming increasingly convinced that if we can understand and address transportation issues at post-secondary education institutions in New Brunswick, this will ultimately improve transportation for all of New Brunswick.

How does your work intersect with sustainability?

I think it is about trying to improve how sustainable options are considered by communities when their transportation planning machinery is set up to plan and deliver road transportation improvements.

The reality is that communities across the country are balancing limited resources and if they’re going to invest $1 million into transportation, they want to get the best bang for their buck, and we are pretty good at determining how that $1 million into road improvements will benefit users in terms of safety, travel time or emissions.

We are not as good at figuring out how $1 million into transit and AT will impact users because it requires a level of data and analysis that can be out of reach for many communities, yet there is the expectation for that information because it is readily available for roads. So that’s one of the areas we hope to help out in.

What impact do you hope this research will have?

To me, success is when our research helps communities make better-informed decisions about transportation and improving mobility options for all. This isn’t about getting rid of the car – it is a lifeline for many in New Brunswick – but this reliance does make us vulnerable to things that impact our access to driving, like increasing costs and health conditions.

My hope is to see us have the person rather than the vehicle at the centre of mobility planning and helping to develop the technical resources to support this. By changing this mindset, I hope we can help communities “dream big” about transportation options where driving becomes one of many possible mobility solutions.

Where can people find information about your work?

Learn more about our work in the Community Transportation Research Lab.

Know someone who should be a Sustainability Research Champion? Tell us about them by filling out our nomination form.

As part of Sustainability Month and Research Celebration Week, Dr. Hanson and his team are hosting Mobility Day events on both campuses. These events will highlight micromobility options, as well as transportation-related programs, projects, and research led by students and faculty.

The day will also feature a roundtable discussion focused on improving transportation in New Brunswick. Join us on Oct. 7, 2025 (FR) and Oct. 9, 2025 (SJ) for these events.