Dr. Mohammad Qureshi, assistant professor of civil, architectural and environmental engineering at the University of Missouri-Rolla, has been selected to serve as the UMR director of the Missouri Transportation Institute (MTI), a statewide consortium involving 11 Missouri colleges and universities that is housed at UMR.

Last summer, Dr. William Ankner was picked to serve as the executive director of MTI. Ankner will work with Qureshi and directors from each participating university to facilitate communication between the faculty and research communities.

MTI was developed to better coordinate research, development and education pertaining to Missouri’s transportation system — from highways and bridges to rail, water, air and public transportation — and help develop new transportation-related technology. An objective transportation and safety public policy and planning think tank, the organization is designed to draw upon the expertise of all 11 colleges and universities, as well as the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT), which sponsors MTI.

As UMR’s director, Qureshi will spend 25 percent of his time helping coordinate activities and encouraging the initiation of research projects at UMR with MTI and its partner schools. He will also develop strategies to ensure that the UMR community is aware of opportunities in meet the needs of MoDOT as well as national transportation challenges.

In addition, Qureshi will continue to serve as director of the Missouri Local Transportation Resource Center (MLTRC), located on the UMR campus. The MLTRC was established in 2002 under contract with MoDOT to house the Local Technical Assistance Program (LTAP) center in Missouri. The LTAP center, one of 58 nationwide, provides workshops and technical assistance and serves as an information clearinghouse for transportation officials in Missouri. In the past 12 months, the MLTRC has provided workshops on work zone safety, snow and ice removal, gravel road maintenance and innovative financing methods.