Christopher Batchelder

Research Assistant, Urban Freight Lab
Undergraduate Student, Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering

Christopher is currently contributing to the Leveraging a Connected Network of Unattended Micro-Pantries to Reduce Food Waste and Improve Food Security project, creating a large database of all the micro-pantries in the Greater Seattle Area.

Christopher is an undergraduate student at the University of Washington, majoring in Civil Engineering and minoring in Geography.

In the past, Christopher has worked at the Bellevue Department of Transportation where he designed different routes for debris vehicles to navigate after major disasters.

Outside of his academic work, Christopher enjoys hiking, photography, and playing the viola for the UW Philharmonic Orchestra.

Oliver Olmedo

Research Assistant, Urban Freight Lab
Graduate Student, Civil and Environmental Engineering (Transportation Track)

oolmedo@uw.edu

Oliver’s research interests center on the intersection of transportation and climate action. Specifically, Oliver aims to explore how improvements in logistics networks can reduce environmental impacts and support climate crisis solutions. He is passionate about identifying strategies and innovations that advance efficiency, equity, resilience, and sustainability within the transportation sector.

Oliver is contributing to the Managing the Traffic-Related Air Pollution (TRAP) Effects of Urban Warehousing Near Historically Marginalized Communities: A Scenario Analysis of Technology and Land Use Based Strategies project, helping the team quantify the health impacts of e-commerce related freight on surrounding populations.

For his Master’s degree research, Oliver is examining the CO2 impacts of food delivery app usage in the Seattle metropolitan area.

Oliver is an international master’s student from Paraguay with a strong background in infrastructure construction and project development. Oliver’s professional experience has underscored the critical role that well-coordinated logistics systems play in shaping everyday life and in advancing sustainable development. Outside of his academic work, Oliver enjoys biking, climbing, backpacking, trying new foods and cafes, and watching Formula 1.

Logistics of Zoning, Zoning for Logistics: Toward Healthy and Equitable Development for Urban Freight (2025)

BSc in Civil Engineering at the National University of Asuncion (Universidad Nacional de Asunción), Paraguay

Arsalan Esmaili

Research Assistant, Urban Freight Lab
Ph.D. Student, Transportation Engineering
Teaching Assistant, Supply Chain Transportation & Logistics Master's Degree Program

arsalan@uw.edu

Publications on Google Scholar

Equity
Electric vehicle
Transit data analysis
Geospatial analysis
Data visualization
Traffic safety modeling
Last-mile delivery

At the University of Washington, Arsalan is involved in several research projects. His works include investigating equity and accessibility of EV charging stations, analyzing transit data, using AI tools to understand the safety of autonomous vehicles, studying public acceptance of autonomous delivery vehicles, and improving curbside access for commercial vehicles.

Autonomous delivery vehicle acceptance: The moderating role of perceived risk of theft (2025)
Boston Delivers: Cargo Bike Pilot Evaluation (2025)

Best Academic Paper, Transportation Research Board (TRB) Freight Planning and Logistics Committee (2025)

Arsalan received his Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering and Master’s degree in Transportation Engineering, both from the University of Tehran. His Master’s thesis focused on analyzing crash datasets and investigating pedestrian risky behavior.

Arsalan is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (Transportation Engineering) at the University of Washington.

Arsalan’s research interests include promoting equity and fairness in transportation, conducting geospatial data analysis, developing data visualization tools, and applying machine learning and artificial intelligence to solve transportation challenges.

Yu-Chen Chu

Yu-Chen Chu(no longer at UFL/SCTL)

Research Assistant, Urban Freight Lab
Ph.D. Student, Urban Planning and Design, University of Washington

ychu24@uw.edu

Yu-Chen’s research interests include last-mile delivery and freight equity.

Boston Delivers: Cargo Bike Pilot Evaluation (2025)

APTF Board Scholarship, American Public Transportation Foundation (APTF), Aug 2024
2024 Dekema Scholarship, California Transportation Scholarship, Aug 2024
Lewis Center Capstone Fellowship, UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies, Dec 2023
James A. Ditch Education Fund Scholarship, California Transit Training Consortium (CTTC), Nov 2023
Vanessa Dingley Fellowship, Department of Urban and Regional Planning, UCLA, Sep 2023
Berg & Associates Scholarship, Women’s Transportation Seminar – Los Angeles (WTS – LA), Sep 2023
American Disability Association Scholarship, APTF, Aug 2023
Systra Scholarship, Conference of Minority Transportation Officials (COMTO), Jul 2023

Ph.D., Urban Planning and Design, University of Washington (in progress)
MURP., Urban and Regional Planning, University of California, Los Angeles
B.S. in Agriculture, Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, National Taiwan University

Yu-Chen holds a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture from National Taiwan University and a Master’s in Urban and Regional Planning from UCLA. She is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Urban Planning and Design at the University of Washington.

At UCLA, she was a graduate research assistant, focusing on community vulnerability research related to wildfire risks, specifically in the context of vehicle electrification, land use, and gentrification.

Prior to her studies at UCLA, she gained practical experience as a landscape designer at AECOM in Taipei, where she worked on complete street designs and regional recreational planning projects.

Her recent publications include:

Chu, Yu-Chen & Taylor, Brian. (2024). “The Impact of SADRs on Vehicle Travel and Emissions: A Focus on On-Demand Food Delivery.” Invited presentation at the 2025 Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting, the 2025 ASCE International Conference on Transportation & Development, and the 2024 METRANS International Urban Freight Conference.

Zhang, N., Jiang, Q., He, B., & Ma, J. (2024, January 10). Multi-scale vulnerability analysis for transportation electrification under extreme weather events. Paper presented at the Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting, Washington, D.C.

Chu, Yu-Chen & Cheng, Chia-Kuen. (2021). “Effect of Renao Scenes on Relationships between Perceived Crowding and Satisfaction.” Journal of Outdoor Recreation Study (TSSCI), 34(4), 67-98. http://dx.doi.org/10.6130/JORS.202112_34(4).0003

Zhengtao Qin

Zhengtao Qin(no longer at UFL/SCTL)

Research Assistant, Urban Freight Lab
Ph.D. Student, Transportation Engineering, Tongji University

qinzhengtao@tongji.edu.cn

Zhengtao’s research interests include urban freight planning, travel behavior, and traffic emission.

Zhengtao is currently undertaking research on the optimization of urban heavy truck route choice to reduce emissions.

Zhengtao Qin holds a Bachelor’s degree in Management Science from the University of Shanghai for Science and Technology and a Master’s degree in Transportation Engineering from Beijing University of Technology. She is pursuing a Ph.D. in Transportation Engineering at Tongji University in China.

She previously interned at the Shanghai Environmental Monitoring Center, where she analyzed daily traffic volume and emission data during an international import exposition.

From July 2024 to July 2025, Zhengtao will be a visiting researcher at the Urban Freight Lab at the University of Washington.

Zhengtao’s recent publications include:

Qin Z, Liang Y, Yang C, et al. Externalities from restrictions: examining the short-run effects of urban core-focused driving restriction policies on air quality. Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment, 2023, 119: 103723. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trd.2023.103723
Yu C, Deng Y, Qin Z, et al. Traffic volume and road network structure: Revealing transportation-related factors on PM2. 5 concentrations[J]. Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment, 2023, 124: 103935. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trd.2023.103935
Yu C, Qin Z, Lu Y, et al. Integrated strategies for road transportation-related multi-pollutant control: A cross-departmental policy mix[J]. Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment, 2024, 132: 104257. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trd.2024.104257

Ph.D., Transportation Engineering, Tongji University (in progress)
M.S., Transportation Engineering, Beijing University of Technology
B.A., Management Science, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology

Jana Chiang

Jana Chiang(no longer at UFL/SCTL)

Net-Zero Logistics Intern, Urban Freight Lab
Undergraduate Student, Community, Environment, and Planning

janac3@uw.edu

Jana’s research interests include last-mile delivery, shared mobility, and logistics in the urban environment.

Jana is gathering and analyzing performance data for Net Zero Logistics final-mile operations in the New York tri-state area and writing a paper on e-cargo bike policy and pilot programs.

Jana Chiang is an undergraduate student pursuing a Community, Environment, and Planning degree at the College of Built Environments at the University of Washington. Jana prides herself on her melon-picking abilities.

B.A., Community, Environment, and Planning degree at the College of Built Environments at the University of Washington (in progress)

Gabor Wehrmueller

Gabor Wehrmueller(no longer at UFL/SCTL)

Research Assistant, Urban Freight Lab
MSc., Supply Chain Management

gwehrm@uw.edu

Digitalization of the supply chain

MSc of Supply Chain Management, University of Washington (in progress)
MSc in Applied Information and Data Science, Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts
BA in Social Sciences, University of Zurich

Gabor Wehrmueller is a Research Assistant at the Urban Freight Lab and is pursuing a Master’s in Supply Chain Management at Foster School of Business. Before starting his Master’s, Gabor worked for over three years as a data scientist digitalizing the supply chain of a pharma company in Switzerland.

Gabor also holds an MSc in Applied Information and Data Science (Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts) and a BA in Social Sciences (University of Zurich).

Jake Paulsene

Research Assistant, Urban Freight Lab
Graduate Student, Civil and Environmental Engineering (Transportation Track)

paulsej5@uw.edu

Jake’s research interests include studying urban and last-mile freight movement, the intersection between transportation engineering and urban planning policies, and the solutions tackling social equity and justice issues.

Urban & last-mile freight movement
Transportation & urban planning policy
Social equity, justice, and safety

Jake Paulsene is a graduate student in the Civil & Environmental Engineering (Transportation Track) program at the University of Washington. Outside of academia, you can find Jake rock climbing or cafe hopping in Seattle.

B.S., Civil Engineering, University of Washington

Travis Fried

Research Assistant, Urban Freight Lab
Ph.D. Student, Civil and Environmental Engineering (Transportation Track)

tfried3@uw.edu | Wilson Ceramics Lab 111

Publications on Google Scholar

Open data
Public transport mapping
Zero-emissions freight
Urban freight
Shared mobility
Equity and justice

CUTC Outstanding Student of the Year (Council of University Transportation Centers, 2024)
John S. Adams Award for Excellence in Transportation Research and Education (University of Minnesota, 2018)
Best Student Paper Award (U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, 2018)
Spatial Mapping Prize (University of Minnesota, 2018)
Walter H. Judd Graduate Fellowship (University of Minnesota, 2017)
Allen & Irene Salisbury Fellowship (Carleton College, 2014)

Ph.D., Transportation Engineering, University of Washington (in progress)
M.S., GIS, University of Minnesota
B.A., Sociology/Anthropology, Carleton College

Travis Fried is a spatial data and urban freight enthusiast with a Master’s degree in GIS from the University of Minnesota and a B.A. in Sociology/Anthropology from Carleton College. Previously, he worked as an urban mobility researcher for World Resources Institute (WRI) studying the environmental, health, and equity impacts of open public transit data, urban freight, shared mobility, transport-related stimulus spending and impact investing – among other topics.

When he’s not making maps, you can find him backpacking somewhere off in the mountains. In fact, Travis has backpacked the entire state of Washington both north to south and east to west.

Environmental Analysis & Assessment (CET 566)

Rishi Verma

Rishi Verma(no longer at UFL/SCTL)

Research Assistant, Urban Freight Lab
Ph.D. Student, Industrial Engineering

rverma32@uw.edu | Wilson Ceramics Lab 111

Excellence in Education – Norwalk Public Schools (2021)

Ph.D., Industrial and Systems Engineering, University of Washington (in progress)
B.S., Operations Research and Engineering (Minors, Computer Science and Music), Cornell University

I hold a BS in Operations Research and Engineering from Cornell University, with minors in Computer Science and Music. After graduating, I became a Teach For America corps member, and spent two years teaching Mathematics at West Rocks Middle School in Norwalk, Connecticut. Currently, I am pursuing a Ph.D. in Industrial and Systems Engineering from the University of Washington and am serving as a research assistant in the Urban Freight Lab.