PhD Position in Multimodal Demand Management and Optimization under Uncertainty

The Scientific Challenge

Urban transport systems generate ever-growing data streams, yet they continue to fail during disruptions. One key reason is that short-term operations and long-term planning are designed in silos. As a result, supply and demand adjustments occur out of sync, leading to congestion, inefficiencies, and service breakdowns.

The ERC Consolidator project TRANSFORM addresses this gap by developing a unified framework for resilient multimodal systems under uncertainty. The project reframes multimodal mobility as a coupled system with three interacting players: mobility service suppliers, infrastructure operators, and users whose decisions and reactions unfold on different time scales. What makes TRANSFORM distinctive is the way it fuses dynamic uncertainty modeling, behaviorally informed demand management, and iterative optimization across multiple decision layers into one coherent methodology.

Your Research Role

In this PhD Position, you will develop the scientific core that enables real-time, coordinated multimodal demand management. You will design a modeling and optimization framework that:

• Explicitly captures the dynamic feedback loop between supply and demand
• Integrates behavioral choice models with network state information
• Supports forward-looking optimization under uncertainty
• Designs individualized multimodal services that improve efficiency while maintaining service quality and user preferences

Your work will result in a novel, scalable modeling framework that advances both theory and application in resilient multimodal transport systems.

Where You Will Work

Your home base will be the SUM Lab in the Department of Transport & Planning (T&P) within the Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences at Delft University of Technology. Our diverse team of researchers, project managers, and professors shares the ambition to create smart, sustainable, and equitable mobility systems. T&P consists of 12 collaborative labs applying advanced technologies such as sensing, data analytics, modeling, and AI to turn scientific research into real-world impact. You will work closely with domain experts Bilge Atasoy and Maarten Kroesen, and collaborate with fellow PhDs and researchers across behavioral modeling, optimization, and transport systems analysis.

The position is embedded in a prestigious ERC consolidator grant, offering strong scientific visibility and opportunities for international collaboration.

Job Requirements

• A Master's degree in a relevant field, i.e., Applied Mathematics, Machine Learning, or Computer Science. An Engineering degree with strong methodological backgrounds related to these topics is also considered.
• Solid knowledge of machine learning, optimization, and discrete choice modeling/behavioral models.
• Strong programming skills (e.g., Python, C++, Java).
• Ability to work both in a project team and independently, taking leadership and responsibility for research tasks.
• Interest in interdisciplinary collaboration and contributing to teaching and lab activities.
• Excellent communication skills in English, both written and oral.

About TU Delft (Delft University of Technology)

Delft University of Technology is built on strong foundations. As creators of the world-famous Dutch waterworks and pioneers in biotech, TU Delft is a top international university combining science, engineering, and design. It delivers world-class results in education, research, and innovation to address challenges in the areas of energy, climate, mobility, health, and digital society. For generations, our engineers have proven to be entrepreneurial problem-solvers, both in business and in a social context.

At TU Delft, we embrace diversity as one of our core values and actively engage to be a university where you feel at home and can flourish. We value different perspectives and qualities. We believe this makes our work more innovative, the TU Delft community more vibrant, and the world more just. Together, we imagine, invent, and create solutions using technology to have a positive impact on a global scale.

Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences

The Faculty of Civil Engineering & Geosciences (CEG) is committed to outstanding international research and education in the field of civil engineering, applied earth sciences, traffic and transport, water technology, and delta technology. Our research feeds into our educational programs and covers societal challenges such as climate change, energy transition, resource availability, urbanization, and clean water. Our research projects are conducted in close cooperation with a wide range of research institutions. CEG is convinced of the importance of open science and supports its scientists in integrating open science in their research practice. The Faculty of CEG comprises 28 research groups in seven departments, including Transport & Planning.

Conditions of Employment

Doctoral candidates will be offered a 4-year period of employment in principle, but in the form of 2 employment contracts. An initial 1.5-year contract with an official go/no-go progress assessment within 15 months, followed by an additional contract for the remaining 2.5 years, assuming everything goes well and performance requirements are met.

Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities, increasing from €3059 - €3881 gross per month, from the first year to the fourth year based on a full-time contract (38 hours), plus 8% holiday allowance and an end-of-year bonus of 8.3%.

As a PhD candidate, you will be enrolled in the TU Delft Graduate School, which provides an inspiring research environment with an excellent team of supervisors, academic staff, and a mentor. The Doctoral Education Programme is aimed at developing your transferable, discipline-related, and research skills.

The TU Delft offers a customizable compensation package, discounts on health insurance, and a monthly work costs contribution. Flexible work schedules can be arranged. TU Delft is committed to making your move as smooth as possible for international candidates, offering relocation support and a Dual Career Programme for accompanying partners.

Application Procedure

Interested in this vacancy? Please apply no later than April 1, 2026, via the application button and upload the following documents:

• CV
• Cover letter (address to Shadi Sharif Azadeh)

Doing a PhD at TU Delft requires English proficiency at a certain level to ensure effective communication and participation in Doctoral Education courses and scientific writing. Please check the Graduate School's Admission Requirements for more details.

Key skills/competency

• Multimodal Transport Systems
• Demand Management
• Optimization Algorithms
• Uncertainty Modeling
• Behavioral Economics
• Machine Learning
• Discrete Choice Modeling
• Real-time Systems
• Data Analytics
• Programming (Python, C++, Java)