University of the West of England

Faculty Member, Environment and Technology

Reader in Travel Behaviour

About

Dr Erel Avineri received his degrees in Industrial Engineering and Management (B.Sc.) and Transportation Sciences (M.Sc., Ph.D.) from the Technion - Israel Institute of Technology. He has been a Post-Doctoral research fellow at the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (Israel). Recently appointed to reader, he has since 2004 been a member of CTS.

Erel has been a project manager and a consultant to more than 50 top leading companies and government agencies in the areas of transport modelling, logistics and operations management. He started his research career developing a "fuzzy" expert system, supporting the decisions of transport projects evaluation, ranking and appraisal.

Erel's main interests are in understanding the cognitive and social factors influencing travel behaviour. Through the use of different observation, modelling and analysis approaches, Erel explored travellers' bounded rationality, the effect of feedback mechanism on travellers' decision-making and the social interactions between travellers. In his research Erel found that while travellers' choices can not be anticipated in a sandard economic framework, they can be explained and predicted by cognitive psychology models. Inspired by the works of cognitive psychologists and behavioural economists. Erel developed and tested choice models that capture travellers' bounded rationality. He is exploring how to change travellers' behaviour in a way that does not limit their freedom of choice (for example by 'nudging').

Areas of Specialism
Understanding and Modelling Travel Behaviour
Decision-Making Processes in a Transport Context
Bounded Rationality of Travel-Choice Behaviour
Behavioural Responses to Advanced Traveller Information Systems (ATIS)
Social Interactions, Social Influence, Pro-Social Value Orientation and other Cognitive-Social Aspects of Travel Behaviour
Soft Computing Applications in Traffic and Transport Systems
Transport Appraisal
Incorporating equity impacts into transport planning
Traffic Safety: Cognitive Psychology and Human Factors
Driver Licensing Systems

Activities
Member of the US Transportation Research Board's Committee on Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Computing Applications (2008-2011)
Honorary Secretary, UTSG (The Universities' Transport Study Group) (2007-2010)
Member of the scientific committee, EWGT 2009, (EURO Workgroup on Transportation), Padua, Italy (2009)
General Chair, The 12th Online World Conference on Soft Computing in Industrial Applications (WSC12) (2007)

Recent Publications (2004-2009)
Avineri, E., Köppen, M., Sunitiyoso, Y., Dahal, K. and Roy, R. (Eds.)(forthcoming, 2009), Applications of Soft Computing: Updating the State of Art. Springer-Verlag, ISBN: 978-3-540-88078-3, Germany, 285 p.

Avineri, E. (forthcoming, 2009), Social Value Orientation and the Efficiency of Traffic Networks. Forthcomimg in: Kitamura, R. and Yoshii, T. (Eds.), The Expanding Sphere of Travel Behaviour Research, Emerald, UK.

Sunitiyoso, Y., Avineri, E. and Chatterjee, K. (forthcoming, 2009), The Role of Minority Influence on the Diffusion of Compliance with a Demand Management Measure. Forthcoming in: Kitamura, R. and Yoshii, T. (Eds.), The Expanding Sphere of Travel Behaviour Research, Emerald, UK.

Avineri, E. (forthcoming, 2009), Driving Licences. Forthcoming in: Nijkamp, P., Button, K. and Vega, H. (Eds.), Transportation Dictionary, Edward Elgar Publishers, Cheltenham, UK.

Avineri, E. (forthcoming, 2009), Incorporating Fuzzy Reference Points into Applications of Travel Choice Modelling. Forthcoming in: Avineri, E., Köppen, M., Sunitiyoso, Y., Dahal, K. and Roy, R. (Eds.), Applications of Soft Computing: Updating the State of Art, Springer-Verlag, Germany, 221-229.

Avineri, E. (forthcoming 2009), Modelling Fractal Traffic Networks. Forthcoming in: Silva, E.A. and De Roo, G. (Eds.), A Planners Meeting with Complexity, Ashgate Publishers Ltd, Aldershot, UK.

Sunitiyoso, Y., Avineri, E. and Chatterjee, K. (forthcoming, 2009), Complexity and Travel Behaviour: Multi-Agent Simulation for Predicting the Influence of Social Aspects on Travellers' Compliance with a Demand Management Measure. Forthcoming in: Silva, E.A. and De Roo, G. (Eds.), A Planners Meeting with Complexity, Ashgate Publishers Ltd, Aldershot, UK.

Avineri, E. and Bovy, P.H.L. (forthcoming, 2008), Parameter Identification of Parameters for Prospect Theory Model for Travel Choice Analysis. Forthcoming in Transportation Research Record.

Jordan, K. and Avineri, E. (forthcoming, 2008), Transport Consultations: Exploring the Age Bias. Forthcoming in Proceedings of ICE, Urban Design and Planning.

Chase, P. and Avineri, E. (2008) Maximizing Motorway Capacity through Hard Shoulder Running: UK Perspective. The Open Transportation Journal 2(1), 7-18.

Saad, A. Avineri, E., Dahal, K., Sarfraz, M. and Roy, R. (Eds.) (2007), Applied Soft Computing: Recent and Emerging Methods and Techniques. Springer-Verlag, ISBN: 978 3 540 70704 2, Germany, 328 p.

Avineri, E. (2007), Exploring and Implementing Theories of Experiential Learning Cycle in the Teaching of Transport Planning. CEBE Transactions 4(1), 18-39.

Lyons, G., Avineri, E., Farag, S. and Harman, R. (2007), Strategic Review of Travel Information Research. The Department for Transport, London.

Avineri, E. (2006), The Effect of Reference Point on Stochastic Network Equilibrium. Transportation Science 40(4), 409-420.

Tiwari, A., Knowles, J., Avineri, E., Dahal, K. and Roy, R. (Eds.) (2006), Applications of Soft Computing: Recent Trends. Springer-Verlag, ISBN: 3 540 29123 7, Germany, 420 p.

Avineri, E. and Prashker, J.N. (2006), The Impact of Travel Time Information on Travelers' Learning under Uncertainty, Transportation 33(4), 393-408.

Avineri, E. and Prashker, J.N. (2005), Sensitivity to Travel Time Variability: Travelers' Learning Perspective. Transportation Research Part C 13(2), 157-183.

Avineri, E. (2005), Soft Computing Applications in Traffic and Transport Systems: A Review. In: Hoffmann, F., Koppen, M., Klawonn, F. and Roy, R. (Eds.), Soft Computing: Methodologies and Applications, Springer Series on Studies in Fuzziness and Soft Computing, Springer-Verlag, Germany, 17-25. 

Avineri, E. (2004), A Cumulative Prospect Theory Approach to Passengers Behavior Modeling: Waiting Time Paradox Revisited. Journal of Intelligent Transportation Systems 8(4), 195-204.

Avineri, E. and Prashker, J.N. (2004), Violations of Expected Utility Theory in Route-Choice Stated Preferences: The Certainty Effect and Inflating of Small Probabilities. Transportation Research Record 1894, 222-229.

Avineri, E. (2004), Graduated Driving License: Evaluating The Effectiveness of New Regulations in Israel. The National Road Safety Authority, Israeli Ministry of Transport, Jerusalem, Israel.

Avineri, E. and Prashker, J.N. (2004), Behavioral Aspects of Route-Choice: Travelers' Sensitivity to Uncertainty. Transportation Research Institute, Haifa, Israel.

Avineri, E. (2004), Traffic Law Enforcement in the City of Ramat-Gan: Analysis of the Enforcement Activities. Or Yarok ("Green Light"), Association for Safer Driving in Israel, Ramat-Hasharon, Israel.

Avineri, E. (2004), Traffic Law Enforcement by Motor-Scooters in the City of Jerusalem. Or Yarok ("Green Light"), Association for Safer Driving in Israel, Ramat-Hasharon, Israel.

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