The Robert C. Johns Research Partnership Award is presented annually to a team of individuals who have collaboratively drawn on their diverse expertise to achieve significant impacts on transportation.
The award is named in honor of former CTS director Robert Johns, who provided visionary leadership in recognizing that the most effective research to address today’s complex transportation challenges is often a result of interdisciplinary teamwork and partnerships. He demonstrated this by developing and leading several major CTS studies, including transportation and regional growth, transportation and community design, and access to destinations. He continued to champion interdisciplinary research as director of the USDOT Volpe National Transportation Systems Center.
Eligibility
This award recognizes research projects within the CTS program that have the following qualities:
- Included an interdisciplinary research component led by University of Minnesota faculty or research staff
- Involved University of Minnesota students
- Produced significant findings that have influenced transportation practice and/or policy
- Generated measured benefits as a result of the impacts of the research
- Involved a team of individuals representing one or more sectors of society (i.e., public, academic, private, non-profit)
2026 Recipient
A team including individuals from the University of Minnesota, Minnesota Department of Transportation, the Federal Transit Administration, and Cambridge Systematics received this award for a project that evaluated a mobility-as-a-service pilot deployed in southern Minnesota. Learn more about the recipients and their research.
Project team
- University of Minnesota: Alireza Khani, Kwangho Baek, Hannah DeBruin
- MnDOT: Elliott McFadden
- Federal Transit Administration: Steve Mortensen
- Cambridge Systematics: Raphael Barcham
Past Recipients
View a list of research projects that have previously received the Research Partnership Award.