2026 Public Transit Short Courses
Registration Form: https://lnkd.in/gK22AJVh
High quality public transit is the linchpin of liveable cities. Not only does it enhance mobility, accessibility, economic productivity, and help address climate change, but the COVID pandemic also illustrated its critical role in public health and ensuring the mobility of essential workers.
Transit has always faced challenges in our auto-dominant society, but now faces an environment that is increasingly uncertain and turbulent. The last few years have highlighted the strategic importance of data, sophisticated analytics, and advanced technology such as Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), that enabled transit systems to respond more nimbly to the dynamic situation and the changing needs of customers. These tools are playing an increasingly critical role in the planning and operations of public transit, and need to be fully integrated into internal business processes.
The Transit Analytics Lab at the University of Toronto Transportation Research Institute is offering two back-to-back courses designed to provide participants with knowledge on key concepts and best practices related to public transit service planning and technology.
The first course, Transit Planning and ITS, provides an overview of key concepts and best practices related to transit planning, network and service design, service standards, transit and land use, and the application of ITS technologies.
The second course, Transit Analytics and Modelling, provides a complementary but more focused and advanced exploration of data analytics and modelling tools that can be used for performance analysis and optimization, forecasting demand at both the system and route levels, transit assignment, and microsimulation-based analysis.
The second course will be extended to two days, adding one session on transit data analytics and three labs for hands-on training involving real-world data and coding exercises using Python, open-source tools, and notebooks.
The courses will be taught by leading transit planning researchers and practitioners and will provide a balanced perspective on transit systems planning and ITS, including both state-of-the-art techniques (including data and AI driven tools) and practical perspectives.
Short Course Leaders
Dr. Brendon Hemily
Dr. Brendon Hemily is an independent consultant with more than 40 years of experience working with the transit industry in Canada and the US, and he serves as Senior Advisor for the Transit Analytics Lab.
He has been involved in a wide range of projects related to the implementation of innovative service concepts and the effective use of advanced technology. Previously, he was Manager of Research and Technical Services at the Canadian Urban Transit Association where he worked for 15 years.
Professor Amer Shalaby
Professor Amer Shalaby is Bahen-Tanenbaum Professor in Civil Engineering and Founding Director of the Transit Analytics Lab at the University of Toronto, with more than 30 years of research and consulting experience in Canada and internationally in the areas of transit planning, scheduling and intelligent transit systems.
His research has been published widely in peer-reviewed journals and international conference proceedings. He has served on various transit committees of the Transportation Research Board, and he sits on the editorial boards of multiple scientific journals.
Professor Nigel Wilson
Professor Nigel Wilson is Emeritus Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at MIT focusing on urban public transport.
He is Founding Director of the MIT Transit Lab, a major long-term collaborative research program with leading global public transport agencies including Transport for London (UK), MTR (Hong Kong) and the MBTA (US) which focuses on making better use of smart card and other automatically collected data to support decision-making throughout the agency. During sabbatical leaves from MIT, Professor Wilson worked in three large transit agencies, the MBTA, Metro Transit of TfL, and has served as consultant to a number of other North American transit authorities. He taught a short course in transit planning at MIT for twenty years which had a cumulative enrollment of over 400 transit professionals.
Professor Eric Miller
Professor Eric Miller is a recognized expert in integrated land use transportation modelling and demand forecasting.
He is the developer of GTAModel, a “best practice” regional travel demand modelling system used widely to forecast travel demand in the Greater Toronto Area. He is co-author of the textbook Urban Transportation Planning: A Decision-Oriented Approach.
Dr. Kareem Othman
Dr. Kareem Othman is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Transit Analytics Lab (TAL), University of Toronto. Kareem has extensive experience in developing simulation models using a range of traffic software such as AIMSUN, Vissim, and Synchro.
He has been involved in multiple research projects that explore the benefits and impacts of emerging technologies, such as vehicle connectivity and electrification, on public transit operations with multimodal corridor control taken into consideration.
Dr. Diego Da Silva
Dr. Diego Da Silva is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Toronto, specializing in Public Transit Analytics and learning methods.
His research spans equity and accessibility, demand forecasting, electric bus operations, intelligent fare systems, open transit data architecture, and service reliability. With a PhD in Computer Science and prior consulting experience in Advanced Analytics and Digital Transformation, Dr. Da Silva bridges academic insight and practical transit innovation.
Dr. Hossam Abdelgawad
Dr. Hossam Abdelgawad has 20 years of experience in developing simulation models using a wide range of traffic software/tools.
He has ample experience in building models using AIMSUN, Vissim, UAF, DynusT, HCS, Synchro, SimTraffic, EMME and Dynameq.
Transit Planning & ITS Course
Monday, August 17, 2026
8:45 – 9:00 Welcome and Course Introduction – Hemily
9:00 – 10:30 Setting the Context for Transit Planning – Hemily
10:30 – 11:00 Coffee Break
11:00 – 12:30 Transit Network Planning – Shalaby
12:30 – 1:30 Lunch
1:30 – 3:00 Fundamentals of Line Analysis and Scheduling – Shalaby
3:00 – 3:30 Coffee Break
3:30 – 5:00 Transit ITS: Developments, Challenges, Opportunities & Future Directions – Hemily
Tuesday, August 18, 2026
8:30 – 10:00 Transit Signal Priority and Novel Route Management Concepts – Shalaby
10:00 – 10:30 Coffee Break
10:30 – 12:00 Transit Performance Monitoring Using ITS Data – Wilson
12:00 – 1:00 Lunch
1:00 – 2:30 Transit Cost Modelling – Wilson
2:30 – 2:45 Coffee Break
2:45 – 4:15 Transit Fare Policy and Collection Technology – Hemily
4:15 – 4:30 Closing Session & Certificate Presentation
Transit Analytics & Modelling Course
Wednesday, August 19, 2026
8:45 – 9:00 Welcome and Course Introduction – Miller
9:00 – 10:30 Introduction to Transit Demand Forecasting & System-Level Methods – Miller
10:30 – 11:00 Coffee Break
11:00 – 12:30 Transit Assignment Models – Shalaby
12:30 – 1:30 Lunch
1:30 – 3:00 Ridership Modelling (Lecture) – Shalaby
3:00 – 3:30 Coffee Break
3:30 – 5:00 Ridership Modelling (Lab) – Othman
Thursday, August 20, 2026
8:30 – 10:00 Data Analytics for Reliability and Accessibility Analysis (Lecture) – Da Silva
10:00 – 10:30 Coffee Break
10:30 – 12:00 Data Analytics for Reliability and Accessibility Analysis (Lab) – Da Silva
12:00 – 1:00 Lunch
1:00 – 2:30 Microsimulation Models of Transit Operations (Lecture) – Abdelgawad
2:30 – 2:45 Coffee Break
2:45 – 4:15 Microsimulation Models of Transit Operations (Lab) – Othman
4:15 – 4:30 Closing Session & Certificate Presentation
Transportation Access
The venue is located near the intersection of St. George Street and College Street in downtown Toronto. It is accessible by the TTC subway (Queen’s Park Station) and the 506 Carlton streetcar. Paid parking is also available nearby.
Accommodation
Suggested accommodation includes:
- Holiday Inn Toronto Downtown Centre, 30 Carlton Street, Toronto
- Chelsea Hotel Toronto, 33 Gerrard Street West, Toronto
Accommodation bookings should be made directly by participants.
Who Should Attend?
The short courses are designed for public transit professionals, transportation planners, engineers, consultants, researchers, government agencies, and graduate students interested in public transit planning, Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), and data-driven decision making. They are suitable for both newcomers and experienced professionals seeking to refresh and expand their knowledge. Members of the public with an interest in transit are also welcome.
Course Organization
The two short courses are organized by the Transit Analytics Lab (TAL) at the University of Toronto Transportation Research Institute (UTTRI).
Registration Fees & Acknowledgment
The registration fees (inclusive of 13% HST) are:
- $1,695.00 CAD – Transit Planning & ITS
- $1,695.00 CAD – Transit Analytics & Modelling
- $3,051.00 CAD – Both Courses
Registration includes course materials, lunches, coffee breaks, and a certificate of completion. Accommodation is not included. Registration will be confirmed by email after payment is received.
Early-bird Registration
Discounted registration fees are available until August 6, 2026:
- $1,440.75 CAD – Transit Planning & ITS
- $1,440.75 CAD – Transit Analytics & Modelling
- $2,593.35 CAD – Both Courses
Refund Policy
Cancellation requests received in writing on or before August 10, 2026 are eligible for a full refund. After this date, refunds are not available. Participants who cannot attend may nominate a replacement.
Contact Details
Dr. Diego Da Silva
Course Manager
Email: tal@utoronto.ca