Research

Research Expertise

Optimization and Mathematical Modeling with Applications in: Transportation Networks, Smart and Shared Mobility, Freight and Logistics, Public Transportation System Planning and Operation, Airport Planning and Operations,  Transportation Sustainability, and Transportation Economics.

Funded Projects

Enhancing Transit Demand Estimation with Emerging Data-as-a-Service (DaaS)   

PI: Y. Sun, Co-PI: Guo, Z.  06/2025 - 11/2026. $230,000.

Sponsor: Florida Department of Transportation

Advancing Community-Centric Equitable Systems and Solutions in Mobility (ACCESS-M), a USDOT-funded Mobility Equity Research Center

PI: Y. Sun, Co-PIs: Guo, Q. , Zhou, X., Smith-Colin, J., and Markovic, N. 11/2024 - 10/2026. $2,970,000.

Sponsor: USDOT 

Research Lab - Fare Capping

PI: Sando, T., Co-PI: Y. Sun  06/2024 - 06/2027. $200,000.

Sponsor: Jacksonville Transportation Authority 

Operational Innovations for Efficiency and Accessibility of On-demand Mobility in Rural Areas

PI: Y. Sun, Co-PI: Moses, R.  05/2024 - 04/2025. $150,000.

Sponsor: USDOT through the Rural Equitable and Accessible Transportation (REAT) Center

Planning: HBCU-UP: Strengthening Data Science Research Capacity and Education Programs through Academia-Industry Partnership

PI: Y. Sun, Co-PI: Park, C.  10/2023 - 09/2025. $200,000.

Sponsor: National Science Foundation

Robustness Assessment of Florida Index for Transportation (FIT) as a Decision-Making Tool in Transportation Planning-Phase 2       

PI: J. Choi, Co-PI: Y. Sun. 04/2022 - 03/2024. $269,196.

Sponsor: Florida Department of Transportation

Evaluating and Validating Technology Options for Estimating Transit Vehicle Occupancy in Real Time       

PI: Y. Sun, Co-PIs: Guo, Q., Guo, Z.,  and Gan, A.   05/2022 - 10/2023. $225,208.

Sponsor: Florida Department of Transportation

Prediction and Mitigation of Harmful Algal Blooms in Biscayne Bay using Advanced Numerical Methods  

PI: Alamdari, N., Co-PI: Y. Sun.  01/2022 - 12/2024. $252,915.

Sponsor: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Excellence in Research: Interoperable Transportation Service Roaming System for Transportation Disadvantaged Populations        

PI: Y. Sun , Co-PIs: Celeste, C.,  and Markovic, N.  09/2021 - 08/2025. $789,942.  

Sponsor: National Science Foundation

Research Initiation Award: Automated Distribution of Autonomous Vehicles

PI: Y. Sun, 05/2021 - 12/2025. $359,995.

Sponsor: National Science Foundation

Optimizing Large-Scale Autonomous Truck Platooning for Energy Efficiency

PI: Y. Sun, 02/2021 - 01/2022. $5,000.

Sponsor: Faculty Research Awards Program, Florida A&M University 

Data-Driven Modeling and Learning of Hurricane Evacuee’s Individual Decision Making under COVID-19 Pandemic 

PI: Y. Sun, Co-PIs: Zhao, T., Jia, M., and Tang, T.  05/2020 - 08/2020. $20,000.

Sponsor: FSU COVID-19 Collaborative Collision Seed Fund 

Improving Hurricane Evacuation Planning by Addressing Evacuees’ Partial-Compliance with Mandatory Orders

PI: Y. Sun, Co-PIs: Zhao, T., Jia, M., and Tang, T.  06/2020 - 06/2021. $25,000.

Sponsor: FSU Multidisciplinary Support (MDS)     

Florida Index for Transportation: A System of Systems Approach to Understanding the Changing Nature of Transportation       

PI: J. Choi, Co-PI: Y. Sun. 07/2019 - 01/2021. $150,000.

Sponsor: Florida Department of Transportation

Enhancing Transportation Accessibility for Aging Population through Mobile Computing and Service Optimization      

PI: Y. Sun , Co-PI: J. Yang. 06/2019 - 06/2020. $15,500.

Sponsor: Institute for Successful Longevity, Florida State University 

FYAP: An Incentive Mechanism to Enable Flexible Peer-to-Peer Ridesharing 

PI: Y. Sun , 05/2019 - 08/2019. $20,000.

Sponsor: Council on Research and Creativity, Office of Research, Florida State University 

Coordinated Airport Facility Development under Uncertainty

PI: Y. Sun , 07/2015 - 07/2016. $10,000.

Sponsor: U.S. Federal Aviation Administration through the Airport Cooperative Research Program 

Integrated, Personalized, Real-Time Traveler Information and Incentive Technology for Optimizing Energy Efficiency in Multimodal Transportation Systems

Y. Sun (Investigator), PI: Lei Zhang, 11/2015 - pr07/2018. $ 4,500,000 

Sponsor: U.S. Department of Energy through ARPA-E Program

Evasive Flow Capturing Problem: Optimal Allocation of Weigh-in-Motion Stations, Tollbooths, and Security Checkpoints

Y. Sun (Investigator), PI: Paul Schonfeld, 06/2015 - 11/2015. $ 220,000.

Sponsor: National Science Foundation

Methods for Improving the Reliability of Transportation Systems

Y. Sun (Investigator), PI: Paul Schonfeld, 01/2016 - 03/2016. $ 120,000.

Sponsor: National Transportation Center, University of Maryland

Efficiency and Reliability in Freight Transportation Systems

Y. Sun (Investigator), PI: Paul Schonfeld, 10/2014 - 12/2015. $ 80,000.

Sponsor: National Transportation Center, University of Maryland

Phased Development of Transportation Projects

Y. Sun (Investigator), PI: Paul Schonfeld, 08/2013 - 09/2014. $ 93,752. 

Sponsor: Mid-Atlantic University Transportation Center

Algorithms for Managing Ridesharing Services

Y. Sun (Investigator), PI: Elise Miller-Hooks, 02/2013 - 06/2013. $ 140,000. 

Sponsor: Maryland Industrial Partnerships and IT Curves