Yang Takes the Helm at Maryland Transportation Institute

Xianfeng (Terry) Yang, a University of Maryland (UMD) associate professor with expertise in smart mobility, AI in Transportation, and connected autonomous vehicles, has been appointed director of the Maryland Transportation Institute (MTI), which brings together faculty from a wide spectrum of fields to collaborate on transportation-related research. He took up the post in July 2026.

The institute he now heads connects more than 20 affiliated research centers and 104 affiliated faculty across ten different colleges at UMD and operates University Transportation Centers designated by the U.S. Department of Transportation. Its affiliates include the Center for Transportation Technology Laboratory, which houses the largest transportation data center in the United States. During the past year alone, MTI has coordinated more than 50 research projects, totalling over $23 million in external funding.

Yang says his priorities as director include boosting proposal writing support for faculty within MTI, using AI to help researchers identify funding opportunities, and launching new collaborations with federal and state transportation agencies. He also hopes to leverage MTI resources to support students and operate educational programs intended to grow the transportation engineering workforce.

Transportation powers economic growth, both in Maryland and elsewhere, and the work being done at MTI helps support that growth, Yang said. “There’s a renewed focus on manufacturing and on emerging industries, and all of that depends on the transportation system. Without transportation, you don’t have an economy.”

But in making decisions about transportation, legislators and state agencies must have rigorous data available. With its access to faculty, labs, and centers at the state’s flagship university, MTI is able to provide the needed support.

And with its researchers harnessing AI and machine learning (ML) to support data analysis, the institute is able to glean more precise findings.

“We’ve always been focused on data-driven research,” Yang said. “But without the right tools, gathering large volumes of data doesn’t get you very far. That’s why we also place great emphasis on advanced computing, AI, and ML.”

With his own research focused on cutting-edge tech, Yang is well-poised to continue MTI’s forward-looking focus. A member of the UMD faculty since 2022, he also heads the Maryland Transportation & AI Laboratory (M-TRAIL), which explores the use of AI and advanced engineering principles to improve traffic safety and operations.

Both at M-TRAIL and now at MTI, Yang’s work is focused on “making travel more convenient, more accessible, and safer for everyone, using the latest tools that we have and developing new ones.”

Published October 12, 2026