About PI

Dr. Xiaotong Sun (孙晓通) is an Assistant Professor in the Intelligent Transportation Thrust at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (Guangzhou). She also holds a joint appointment with the Innovation, Public Policy, and Entrepreneurship Thrust, and is an affiliate Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at HKUST.

Education

• Ph.D. in Civil Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
• M.S. in Civil Engineering, University of Florida
• Bachelor in Transportation Engineering, Minor in Mathematics, Tongji University

Research Areas

Planning, operations, and regulations of multi-modal transportation systems integrating emerging technologies.

Methodology

Optimization, Game Theory, Mechanism Design, Data-driven Approaches, Transportation Systems Modeling, Transportation Economics.

Selected Research Topics

Implications of AI Agent Technologies for Transportation Systems

• Connected and Automated Vehicles
• Electric Vehicles
• UAVs & EVOLs

Platform-based Transportation Services

• Pricing Mechanisms
• Contract Design
• Welfare Economics Analysis

Teaching

• UFUG2102 Matrix Algebra and Applications
• UFUG2103 Linear Algebra
• INTR5110 Urban Transportation Network Modeling
• INTR5200 Emerging Mobility Systems Analysis
• INTR5210 Game-theoretical Methods in Transportation

Funded Projects

• NSFC: General Program, Truck Platooning under Mixed Traffic on Freight Corridors: Operational Constraints and Intelligent Decision-Making, PI.
• GDST: 1+1+1 Joint Funding Scheme, From Shared Roads to Shared Benefits: Integrating Physical, Perceptual, and Planning Intelligence for Sustainable Street Transformation, PI.
• HKU-Qianhai Institution of Intelligent Tranport (Industry), Intelligent Pricing Algorithms for Smart Parking Systems, PI.
• HKUST(GZ): LASERi Seed Project 2024, On the Sustainable and Economic Impact of Low-Altitude Aviation Systems, PI, completed.
• Guangzhou Municipal Science and Technology Bureau: Young Scientists Fund, Mechanism Design and Optimization for Mobility-as-a-Service, PI.
• NSFC: Young Scientists Fund, Multi-perspective Game-theoretical Studies for Decentralized Truck Platooning Systems, PI, completed.
• Guangzhou Municipal Science and Technology Bureau: 2023 Guangzhou–HKUST(GZ) Joint Funding Scheme (Industry), Autonomous Traffic Efficiency and Safety under Perception Uncertainty: The Integrated Analysis and Countermeasures, PI, completed.
• Dongfang Electric Corporation, Validation Services for Precision Assessment of Surplus Decision-Making Training under Human–Machine Integration, co-PI.
• NSFC: General Program, Research on Optimization Problems in Container Terminal Gate Traffic Management and Congestion Mitigation, co-I.
• Chief Executive’s Policy Unit, HKSAR Government: Strategic Public Policy Research Funding Scheme (SPPR), Development Strategies for an Advanced Air Mobility Network in the Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao Greater Bay Area, co-I.
• Guangzhou Municipal Science and Technology Bureau: Guangzhou Municipal Key Laboratory Program, Guangzhou Finance Technology Frontier Municipal Key Laboratory, co-I, completed.
• GDST: Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory Program, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Integrated Communication, Sensing and Computation for Ubiquitous Internet of Things, co-I, completed.
• The Municipal Key Laboratory of Guangzhou, Guangzhou Seamless Connectivity and Connected Intelligence Municipal Key Laboratory, co-I, completed.

For more details, please check our Updates or Publications pages.