Session 11B7 the Tren Urbano Upr/Mit Professional Development

Session 11b7

The Tren Urbano Upr/Mit Professional Development Program Antonio A. González-Quevedo and Benjamin Colucci Department of Civil Engineering University of Puerto Rico Mayagüez , Puerto Rico 00681-9041

Lydia E. Mercado-Sherman Frederic R. Harris San Juan, P. R.

Kenneth E. Kruckemeyer and Nigel H. M. Wilson Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Abstract - A joint multidisciplinary professional development to work and socialize together, developing friendships that program has been developed which uses the Tren Urbano can be sustained over the intervening period and beyond. project as a laboratory for students from the University of The program places a strong emphasis on the Puerto Rico (UPR) and the Massachusetts Institute of multidisciplinary nature of major infrastructure projects, so Technology (MIT). The Tren Urbano project consists of the that students learn the importance of all aspects of a project, planning, design, construction and future operation of the including engineering with all its specialties, transportation, first phase of an urban heavy-rail transit system in the systems, architecture, social factors, urban planning, metropolitan area of San Juan, Puerto Rico. Each year a marketing, safety, and public participation. The students number of students (ranging from 10 - 15) from engineering, come to appreciate that a successful project requires a very architecture, and urban planning from each university are strong team effort. Each student, with the advice of one of the selected to participate in the program for one to two years. professors involved in the program, must choose a research The students, along with faculty involved in developing and topic and develop a project running through the one to two directing this program, participate in two ten-day workshops, years of their participation in the program. The UPR students one at MIT and one at the UPR. In these workshops, experts also have the opportunity to work during their second in urban transportation systems, with experience in the summer with the companies involved with the design or development of recent rail extensions in Boston and in San construction of the project. At the end of the program, the Juan's new rail system, discuss the different aspects of the UPR students have an employment opportunity with one of development of these types of major infrastructure projects. the companies involved with the Tren Urbano project. Each student defines a research topic related to the Tren The UPR students visit a third city as part of the Urbano project, and conducts research under the supervision program. The purpose of this site visit is to act as educated of faculty from UPR or MIT. The program, now in its sixth observers, learning about the positive and negative aspects of year, has already served about sixty students from UPR and another public transportation system in a different urban is expected to run until the year 2002, when the first phase of setting. Through this learning process, the students will be the Tren Urbano is scheduled to begin full operation. able to avoid the same mistakes when working on the San Juan project, as well as adapt the successful features of the During the summer workshop at MIT, the students from the system visited. University of Puerto Rico experience life in a metropolitan The students learn about the interaction among area (Boston) with an extensive and well-established mass professionals and come to see the project as a complete entity. transit system. They learn, through case studies, how recent They develop the ability to deal in a multicultural urban rail extensions were planned and built. During the environment. We expect that the students, after their winter workshop at UPR, the students from MIT experience participation in the program, will become highly trained and life in the metropolitan area of San Juan and learn first hand motivated professionals, ready to tackle and even lead similar about the problems of the city and the role that the Tren projects in their future careers. Urbano will play in their solution. Both workshops provide the opportunity for the students and faculty of UPR and MIT

The Vision and Objectives students for conducting their research project, plan and implement site visits to operating transit systems; and The initial vision came from the highest officials of the evaluate the program. The costs of all the different activities Puerto Rico Department of Transportation and Public Works are covered by the program. and its Highway and Transportation Authority. These government officials following the advice of some The University of Puerto Rico experienced consultants outlined the following principal objectives for the program: Three schools belonging to the University of Puerto Rico participate in the program: 1) the School of Engineering 1. To develop local professionals in transit system planning, located in the city of Mayagüez, 2) the Graduate School of design, construction and operation, whose expertise can Planning and, 3) the School of Architecture, both located in become a valuable high-technology service with a ready San Juan. Designated professors from the three schools export market in Latin America. advise the students on their research projects and also 2. To strengthen the educational and research programs in participate in all the activities. The faculty is also responsible the most important infrastructure-related disciplines at for selecting the students who will participate in the program. the University of Puerto Rico. Faculty participation provides academic rigor to the activities. 3. To establish a model for cross-disciplinary cooperation The professors also use this special experience in their among UPR faculty in engineering, architecture, and classrooms and in developing new courses and improving planning, working together with experts from existing ones. Presently students from Civil, Industrial, government and industry to apply an integrated systems Electrical and Computer, and Mechanical Engineering approach to the development of a major urban participate in the program. The Transportation Technology infrastructure project. Transfer Center of the Civil Engineering Department manages the program at the UPR side. The Management of the Program The Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Tren Urbano project is a living laboratory for the The Massachusetts Institute of Technology provides support formation of young professionals in rail transit. The project for the Tren Urbano project overall and plays a major role in structure and schedule is the context for the Professional technology transfer activities by working very closely with the Development Program and the object of study and research as University of Puerto Rico. Specifically, several research staff well as a professional practice for engineering, architecture spend a significant portion of their time on site in San Juan and planning students. All program components, the short providing technical assistance on various aspects of the courses, student research and internships, have evolved along project. In addition a number of MIT faculty from the School with the progress of the project -- beginning with planning, of Engineering and Urban Planning and Architecture are environmental analysis and design, moving on to construction actively involved both in interacting with their counterparts at and, eventually, culminating in operations and maintenance UPR, and in directing research by MIT students in support of of the newly-constructed transit system. the overall Tren Urbano program. The Tren Urbano Office manages a subcontract with each university, coordinates program activities with the universities, plans and implements the work internships, Program Elements serves as liaison for student inquiries, and evaluates the program. The program consists of six (7) key program elements which The program has received funding mainly from the are focused on giving students a well-rounded academic and government of Puerto Rico through its Department of practical professional formation, as depicted below and Transportation and Public Works. The President of the described in the sections that follow. University of Puerto Rico supported the program during Program Element 1. Student selection conducted at each the first three years (totally for the first two years and university. partially for the third year) for the UPR side. Program Element 2. MIT Short Course on Public Transportation in Boston. (June or July) The Universities Program Element 3. UPR Short Course on Tren Urbano, Public Transportation in Puerto Rico and International Metro The two universities -- UPR and MIT -- recruit and select the Systems students; plan and implement two short courses; guide Program Element 4. Student research project, which can last student research; provide faculty advisors to students; pay the from one to two years 0-7803-5643-8/99/$10.00 © 1999 IEEE November 10 - 13, 1999 San Juan, Puerto Rico 6 29th ASEE/IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference 11b7-6 Session 11b7

Program Element 5. Summer internship UPR Short Course on Tren Urbano Program Element 6. Visit to a third city with an operating rapid rail system The students at MIT share with their counterparts from Program Element 7. Possible work experience for a year after Puerto Rico the experience of living in the metropolitan area graduation with one of the contractors, consultants or the of San Juan, learning first-hand about the problems of the city Tren Urbano Office. and the role that Tren Urbano will play in their solution. In this ten-day shared experience, the students are exposed to a Student Selection number of distinguished professionals who give talks and lead discussions on topics ranging from aspects of Puerto Rican Being part of the program has become a very prestigious culture to specific technical details about the Tren Urbano activity for our students. Therefore, we receive a greater project. number of applications than the spots we have available. Professors from the Schools of Engineering, Students are required to submit a record of their grades, three Architecture, and Graduate School of Planning, as well as letters of recommendation, general information by filling out federal, Puerto Rico and local government officials, and a form, an essay describing their interest in the program and professionals from the consulting companies involved in the what they want to accomplish through it. The professors design and construction of Tren Urbano share with the meet as a committee, and evaluate all the applications students their expertise in all aspects of the development of through a formal process, giving points for each of the this complex project. The discussions are conducted at the submittals. Finally, all the results of the evaluations, made by Río Piedras Campus of the UPR and at the Tren Urbano each faculty member, are summarized, and a final decision is Office also in the Río Piedras area. made on who the new student participants will be. The Research Experience The MIT Summer Short Course on Public Transportation in Boston The program emphasizes the multidisciplinary nature of major infrastructure projects. Students learn the importance The UPR students begin the summer course in San Juan, of looking at all the aspects of a project, such as, engineering, where they are introduced to the Tren Urbano project through transportation, systems, architecture, social, urban planning, two intensive days of presentations. The urban development safety, and public participation. The students come to realize of the San Juan Metropolitan Area (SJMA), the changes in that a successful project requires a strong team effort. Each transportation needs and facilities, particularly the post- student, under the guidance of one of the professors involved World War II, the wide-spread sub-urbanization and the in the program, must choose a research topic and develop a exponential growth in the use of the automobile, sets the stage project throughout the one to two years residence in the for studying the strategy for the design, construction and program. Most of the UPR students from engineering are operation of the Tren Urbano rail system. The two-day undergraduates, while from planning and architecture they introduction concludes with a look at the long-term are mostly graduate students. The graduate students are considerations of system expansion, island-wide usually involved with the program for two years and their transportation, joint development and land use. research results in their theses. On the other hand, the The UPR students then travel to Boston to meet their undergraduate students conduct research for six credit hours MIT colleagues, and to spend 10 days studying and (3 credits per semester) as part of the undergraduate research experiencing a city that has a highly developed public course. They must submit a report of their research project to transportation network, and that has had a rapid transit fulfill one of the requirement of the program. system for nearly a century. Students conduct research in many areas of interest to the The course of study at MIT includes field trips to study Tren Urbano project. Most of the time a great deal of transit design, construction, operations and maintenance first interaction occurs between the students and the professionals hand. Students supplement the formal field trips with in the project, who end up being a major source of personal exploration of the city by transit as they travel to information for the students. In the UPR course, half a day is several events that include a harbor cruise and a Red Sox spend introducing to the students the Tren Urbano baseball game. A course project that mixes students from professionals. Then the students have some time to meet with both institutions and across disciplines is assigned. The them and establish a first contact for future reference. project requires keen observation of the best and worst aspects of the Boston transit system, and it asks the teams to make recommendations for achieving the best system in San Juan. The results are presented by the teams on the final day. 0-7803-5643-8/99/$10.00 © 1999 IEEE November 10 - 13, 1999 San Juan, Puerto Rico 7 29th ASEE/IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference 11b7-7 Session 11b7

Professional Practice -- The Work Internship design, implementation, operation and maintenance, in Puerto Rico far into the 21st century. It should be noted During the second summer in the program, students are that these experts will be especially needed by the assigned to a ten-week, full-time internship with Tren Urbano municipalities directly affected by the construction of contractors and consultants. The internship experience is Tren Urbano. The new rail transit system is going to be a directed by the technology transfer manager of the Tren deciding factor in the future development of these Urbano Office. The internship has the two main objectives: municipalities, and they will need teams of experts such (1) To provide students a meaningful and professionally- as those that will be produced by this program to devise relevant work experience, and (2) To provide a forum for development plans that maximize the beneficial impacts professional development. of Tren Urbano. Students spend ten weeks at their work sites. They also participate in four biweekly lunch meetings. Two of 3. Exportable Expertise: the local experts created by the these meetings are designed to enhance professional program will be able to export their knowledge and development and the other two are evaluation sessions. experience as integrated consulting services in advanced The first evaluation session is conducted on the fifth infrastructure planning, design, and engineering. If the week with both students and supervisors. The final program operates as planned until the year 2001, it will evaluation occurs during the tenth week. Evaluations are produce a cadre of about 150 bilingual experts in turnkey both written and oral. After completing the written procedures for major infrastructure projects. These forms, interns and supervisors review their comments in specially trained young professionals, two-thirds of pairs, followed by small group discussions and a brief whom will be Puerto Ricans, will be a valuable asset in summary plenary. The summer internship culminates targeting the emerging Latin American market for with a closure dinner where interns are awarded infrastructure systems development. certificates of participation and are recognized for their contributions to the work place. The academic advantages that the MIT/UPR collaboration brings to the students and MIT are found in Evaluation of the Program three areas, all related to education through practical Application. MIT’s intellectual foundation is centered at the juncture of theory and practice. The Tren Urbano project The investment in the Tren Urbano professional development provides an extraordinarily stimulating practical application program, in addition to the many academic advantages it will of the theories presented in the Institute’s courses. The bring to the departments of the University of Puerto Rico summer program in Boston, the winter program in San Juan, involved, will result in three valuable long-term benefits for and student research projects all give students intimate Puerto Rico: knowledge of the specifics and broader aspects of real transit projects. 1. Education: strengthened teaching and research The Tren Urbano project provides a parallel in the programs in the College of Engineering, the School of academic environment of the collaboration between Architecture, and the Graduate School of Planning. The disciplines that is required in the creation of successful educational and research programs in the most important transportation projects. This collaboration is emphasized in infrastructure-related disciplines at UPR will be the two short courses and in the student and faculty weekly strengthen and invigorated by hands-on participation in a meetings during the year, as well as in the organization, major project and the cross-disciplinary interaction it will development and supervision of the research projects. entail. Faculty and students in engineering, architecture, For MIT students, this collaboration provides an unusual and planning will be working together with professionals opportunity for studying with students and professors from from the public and private sectors, sharing expertise and Puerto Rico, which posses a very strong Hispanic culture and applying theory to a real-world situation, implementing heritage, and for learning about a transit project that must be an integrated systems approach to the development of a successful in a Latin environment. This preparation for the major urban infrastructure project. professional sensitivity and skills required for work in the 21st century will be of considerable use to these students in 2. Professional Resources: significantly expand the years to come. number of professionals in urban planning, architecture, and engineers interested in transportation. The graduates Conclusions of this special program who remain in Puerto Rico will constitute a state-of-the-art knowledge base in these Universities that can become involved in the planning, design critical areas that will benefit urban transit planning, and construction of major infrastructure projects in their 0-7803-5643-8/99/$10.00 © 1999 IEEE November 10 - 13, 1999 San Juan, Puerto Rico 8 29th ASEE/IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference 11b7-8 Session 11b7 regions, should use this unique opportunity to provide their students with a very special experience that will dramatically change their future. These universities can use this opportunity to establish alliances with other universities that have something extra to offer their students. Internally, alliances can be established among different departments and schools of the university. These alliances will promote interdisciplinary work among students and professors. The relevance of the educational programs is greatly improved when these interactions among universities and departments happen. This paper provides a model, which has been very successful in accomplishing its goals, and which can be used as guidance for establishing similar programs in other universities.