Newcastle University

Background

Joined the Transport Operations Research Group (TORG) in the (then) Department of Civil Engineering at Newcastle University in October 1989. After working as a Research Associate, I joind the academic staff in 1997 as a Lecturer in Transport Studies.My research focus is to conduct empirical investigations of attitudinal and behavioural responses to technology-based travel demand management strategies which aim to reduce congestion and atmospheric pollution and improve road safety. This is illustrated by the current Foot_LITE Project which is developing, demonstrating and evaluating an on-board driver assistance device to encourage safe and efficient driving. 

Roles and Responsibilities

Member of MSc Transport Boards of Studies and Examiners; Civil Engineering Undergraduate Boards of Studies and Examiners; Member of Postgraduate Staff Student Committee; PhD Selector for Transport; School Web Committe; School Library Liaison Committee; Fire Marshall

Qualifications

PhD Civil Engineering (Transport) Newcastle University (2005)

MSc Transport, University of Wales (1989)

BSc(Hons) Urban and Regional Planning, University of Wales (1988) 

Memberships

Member of the Institution of Highways and Transportation, from 1992 and NE Branch Committee since 2001.

Member of the International Association of Travel Behaviour Research

Research Interests

Travel Behaviour Modelling; Attitudinal Modelling; Travel Demand Management Techniques; Transport Telematics; Road User Charging; Survey Design and Data Collection; Revealed and Stated Preference; Quantitative Data Analysis.

Esteem Indicators

Membership of Professional Bodies:

Member of the Institution of Highways and Transportation, from 1992 and NE Branch Committee since 2001.

Member of the Transport Planning Society

Member of the International Association of Travel Behaviour Research

Editorial Board: Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers (Transport) 2003-2007; Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers (Urban Design and Planning); 2008-date

International:

Project Evaluator: Belgian Federal Office for Scientific, Technical and Cultural Affairs on ‘Sustainable Consumption and Production Patterns’ research programmes (1996-date).

Appointed as Expert Project Evaluator for the European Commission’s FP6 DG-TREN ‘Sustainable Surface Transport’ Research Programme

Appointed as Expert Project Evaluator for the European Commission’s FP6 DG-TREN FP6 IST Call 4 proposals submitted to Strategic Objective "eSafety - Co-operative Systems for Road Transport

Project Evaluator: International Association for the Promotion of co-operation with scientists from New Independent States of the former Soviet Union (INTAS).

Invited speaker on HGV Charging research at the US Transportation Research Board Workshop 162 on ‘Active Road Pricing: Description of key challenges and solutions using advanced computing tools.’ (2006)

Referee for the Journals of Transport Policy, Transportation, Municipal Engineer, Planning Theory and Practice, International Journal of Sustainable Transportation and also the Institution of Civil Engineers.

National Interests:

Elected to the Executive Committee of the Universities’ Transport Study Group (2000-2003).

Local Interests:

Member of the Tyne and Wear Transport Innovation Fund Steering Committee

Member of the Northumbria Safety Camera Partnership Working Group and Steering Committee

Industrial Relevance

Travel Behaviour Modelling; Attitudinal Modelling; Travel Demand Management Techniques; Transport Telematics; Road User Charging; Survey Design and Data Collection; Revealed and Stated Preference; Quantitative Data Analysis.

Undergraduate Teaching

Undergraduate teaching on transport to Stage 4 MEng students and Stage 3 and 4 student project supervision

CEG2001 Design of Sustainable Transport Systems
CEG8411 Public Inquiry into a Transport Scheme

Postgraduate Teaching

CEG8401 Quantitative Methods
CEG8410 Road Safety
CEG8499 Dissertation
CEG8402 Transport Policy in Practice
CEG8411 Public Inquiry into a Transport Scheme

CEG8408 Railway Management, Economics and Planning

• Ayodele E, Bell MC, Galatioto F, Thorpe N. A Study of the Potential Use of Bluetooth Sensor Data in Delivering Sustainable Transport Networks. In: 45th Annual Universities' Transport Study Group Conference (UTSG 2013). 2013, Oxford, UK: UTSG.
• Harvey J, Thorpe N, Fairchild R. Attitudes towards and perceptions of eco-driving and the role of feedback systems. Ergonomics 2013, 56(3), 507-521.
• Evans GD, Thorpe N. Newcastle International Airport Modal Split Market Research Report Phase 5. Newcastle University, 2013.
• Caygill M, Thorpe N, Harvey J, Namdeo A. Public Attitudes and Perceptions Towards High Speed Rail. In: 45th Annual Universities' Transport Study Group Conference (UTSG 2013). 2013, Oxford, UK.
• Harvey J, Thorpe N, Guo A. Young Driver Training: A Critical Review of the Literature. Newcastle University, 2013.
• Thorpe N, Fawcett L. Linking road casualty and clinical data to assess the effectiveness of mobile safety enforcement cameras: a before and after study. BMJ Open 2012, 2(6), e001304.
• Evans GD, Thorpe N. Newcastle International Airport Modal Split Market Research Phase 4. University of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK: School of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, 2011.
• Harvey J, Heslop S, Thorpe N. The categorisation of drivers in relation to boredom. Transportation Planning and Technology 2011, 34(1), 51-69.
• Thorpe N. Urban development and sustainability. Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers: Urban Design and Planning 2011, 164(DP2), 55-56.
• Harvey J, Thorpe N, Heslop S, Mulley C. Driver Boredom: Does it differ across cultures and why?. In: 10th International Probabilistic Safety Assessment & Management Conference (PSAM). 2010, Seattle, Washington, USA.
• Heslop S, Harvey J, Thorpe N, Mulley C. Factors that comprise driver boredom and their relationships to preferred driving speed and demographic variables. In: Transportation Planning and Technology: 41st Annual Universities Transport Studies Group Conference. 2010, University College London, UK: Taylor & Francis Ltd.
• Heslop S, Harvey J, Thorpe N, Mulley C. Factors that comprise driver boredom and their relationships to preferred driving speed and demographic variables. Transportation Planning and Technology 2010, 33(1), 75-89.
• Heslop S, Harvey J, Mulley C, Thorpe N. Driver Boredom. In: 41st Annual UTSG Conference. 2009, London, UK: Universities' Transport Studies Group.
• Heslop S, Harvey J, Thorpe N, Mulley C. Driver boredom and preferred driving speed. In: R Bris, C Guedes Soares & S Martorell, ed. Reliability, Risk and Safety. London: Taylor & Francis, 2009, pp.1237-1244.
• Thorpe N, Hargreaves AJ, Mitchell G, Namdeo AK, Wright SD, Brake JF, Nelson JD. Spatial Development and the Sustainability of Urban Areas. In: Proceedings of the 14th Hong Kong Society for Transport Studies (HKSTS) International Conference on Transportation and Geography. 2009, Hong Kong: Hong Kong Society for Transport Studies (HKSTS).
• Thorpe N, Hargreaves AJ, Mitchell G, Namdeo AK, Wright SD, Brake JF, Nelson JD. Spatial development and the sustainability of urban areas. In: Transportation and Geography: 14th HKSTS International Conference. 2009, Hong Kong, China: Hong Kong Society of Transportation Studies Ltd.
• Brake JF, Fairchild RG, Murphy SM, Thorpe N. Stakeholder requirements for advanced driver assistance systems to encourage safe and green driving. In: 16th ITS World Congress. 2009, Stockholm, Sweden.
• Heslop S, Harvey J, Thorpe N, Mulley C. The influence of personal variables on changes in driver behaviour. In: S Martorell, C Guedes Soares and J Barnett, ed. Safety, Reliability and Risk Analysis: Theory, Methods and Applications. London: CRC Press, 2009, pp.299-304.
• Safour A, Dissanayake D, Bell MC, Thorpe N. Using hazard-based models to explain changes in the duration of journey-to-work trips. In: 41st Annual UTSG Conference. 2009, London: Universities' Transport Studies Group.
• Fairchild RG, Brake JF, Thorpe N, Birrell SA, Young MS, Felstead T, Fowkes M. Using On-board Driver Feedback Systems to Encourage Safe, Ecological and Efficient Driving: The Foot-LITE Project. In: AISB 2009 Convention: Adaptive and Emergent Behaviour and Complex Systems. 2009, Edinburgh, UK: The Society for the Study of Artificial Intelligence and the Simulation of Behaviour.
• Thorpe N. Employee Attitudes to Driver Behaviour and Speed Cameras: A Case Study of Northumbria NHS Trust. Northumbria Safer Roads Initiative website, 2008.
• Young MS, Birrell SA, Stanton NA, Thorpe N, Fowkes M. Safe and fuel efficient driving: Defining the benchmarks. In: Contemporary Ergonomics: Proceedings of the International Conference on Contemporary Ergonomics (CE). 2008, Nottingham, UK: London: Taylor and Francis.
• Keuleers B, Chow V, Thorpe N, Timmermans H, Wets G. Behavioural change in activity-travel patterns in response to road user charging. Journal of Transport Economics and Policy 2006, 40(1), 119-134.
• Dodoo NA, Thorpe N. A new approach for allocating pavement damage between heavy goods vehicles for road-user charging. Transport Policy 2005, 12(5), 419-430.
• Thorpe N, Hills PJ. Drivers’ responses to road-user charges using Global Positioning System (GPS) Technology. Journal of the International Association of Traffic and Safety Sciences 2003, 27(1), 75-84.
• Noland RB, Polak JW, Bell MGH, Thorpe N. How much disruption to activities could fuel shortages cause? - The British fuel crisis of September 2000. Transportation 2003, 30(4), 459-481.
• Thorpe N, Hills PJ. Investigating drivers' responses to road-user charges using global positioning system (GPS) technology. IATSS Research 2003, 27(1), 75-84.
• Thorpe N, Bell MGH, Polak JP, Noland RB. ‘A Telephone Survey of Stated Responses to Fuel Shortages’. In: Lyons GD; Chatterjee K, ed. Transport Lessons from the Fuel Tax Protests of 2000. Hampshire: Ashgate Publishing, 2002, pp.161-181.
• Thorpe N. Public acceptance of road-user charding – A case study of the Toll-rings in Norway. IATSS Research 2002, 26(1), 17-27.