Civil Engineering Professor Receives Most-Cited Paper Award

Amir Mehrara Molan recognized at Transportation Research Board conference

Reuy ‘Kelvin’ Cheu (right), editor-in-chief of the International Journal of Transportation Science and Technology, presents Amir Mehrara Molan, UM assistant professor of civil engineering, with the journal’s Most Cited Paper Award during the International Transportation Board’s 102nd meeting in Washington, D.C. Submitted photo

OXFORD, Miss. – Peer recognition is a rewarding experience for anyone, but University of Mississippi researcher Amir Mehrara Molan was elated when an article he co-authored recently received the Most Cited Paper Award at the 102nd Transportation Research Board meeting in the nation’s capital.

The International Journal of Transportation Science and Technology presented the civil engineering professor with a certificate honoring his achievement Jan. 9 during the TRB meeting in Washington, D.C.

“As a researcher, it is always great to hear that other researchers are reading your articles, and the results could help them in their own research studies,” Molan said. “As the ultimate goal in research on transportation engineering, these articles will hopefully help transportation professionals to provide a better and safer service for people.”

The paper, “Analyzing injury severity of motorcycle at-fault crashes using machine learning techniques, decision tree and logistic regression models,” was co-authored by Mahdi Rezapour, the paper’s lead author, and Khaled Ksaibati, both of the University of Wyoming.

The paper has been cited 48 times since it was first published in June 2020, according to Google Scholar.

“Unlike passenger vehicles, motorcycles do not have much protection when it comes to crash involvement,” Molan said. “In Wyoming, fatal or severe crashes account for 4% of all crashes, while 34% of motorcycle crashes are fatal or severe.

“Despite the heightened severity of motorcycle crashes, not much research has been conducted by using comprehensive methods to identify the contributory factors of such crashes.”

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