© Portrait Sam Rentmeester
‘From traffic jam prediction to bicycle parking design, this is what we’ve got the tools for’
Like a train running through the flat Dutch landscape, mobility is the common thread running through this issue of Delft Matters. Will we manage to turn flying into a green form of travel or will we all soon be going on holiday by train? Can cars still be allowed to enter cities?
One thing is certain: mobility must become sustainable. It must be emission free, but still affordable and accessible to all. So, mobility is in transition, and this touches on other societal transitions: the energy transition, the digital transition, the transition to a circular economy.
These are movements that could reinforce each other, but they sometimes get in each other’s way. After all, materials, funds and space are not unlimited resources. Concessions and difficult choices lie ahead – not something we shrink from here in Delft.
From traffic jam prediction to bicycle parking design, this is what we’ve got the tools for. At the same time, we have the courage to identify the dilemmas and to develop a vision of a viable mobility future. We will be presenting this vision early next year.
Smart mobility will certainly play a role in our vision; smart applications will get people and goods to their destinations quickly, efficiently and easily. What’s less well known at this stage is TU Delft’s role in the building blocks of such smart technology. In our high-tech cleanrooms, we are conducting fundamental research on computer chips and testing innovations. It’s time to showcase this work.
Also in this edition, an update on the Excellence Fund and interviews with top scientists we’ve been able to attract through the fund. We talk to administrators, introduce the alumnus of the year and take a look behind the scenes with student team Space Oasis, who are busy designing a self-sustaining lunar colony. All that and many more close encounters, because in the end it is not so much about getting from a to b, but mostly about connection.
Professor Tim van der Hagen
Rector Magnificus TU Delft
Delft Matters stops on paper after next edition in June 2025. Would you like to keep up to date with the latest developments at TU Delft? Then please submit your e-mail address.
