Eleftheria Kontou
Primary Research Area
- Transportation Engineering
Research Areas
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Biography
Eleftheria (Ria) Kontou is an assistant professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign since 2019. Her research interests include transportation planning, electrification and emerging vehicle technologies operations, as well as transportation and energy sectors interdependencies. Prior to beginning her faculty position at UIUC, she was a postdoctoral research associate at the Transportation and Hydrogen Systems Center of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and conducted research in the Department of City and Regional Planning at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She received her PhD in Civil Engineering, focusing on transportation systems, from the University of Florida. Dr. Kontou holds a MSc from Virginia Tech and a BSc from National Technical University of Athens in Civil Engineering. She is a member of the Transportation Research Board (TRB) Committee on Alternative Transportation Fuels and Technologies of the National Academies.
Education
- PhD, Civil Engineering, University of Florida, 2016
- MSc, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 2013
- Diploma, Civil Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 2011
Academic Positions
- Assistant Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Oct 2019-Present
- Postdoctoral Researcher, Department of City and Regional Planning, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Aug 2018-Oct 2019
- Postdoctoral Research Associate, Transportation and Hydrogen Systems Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Jan 2017-Aug 2018
Professional Societies
- Transportation Research Board Young Members Coordinating Council Incoming Chair (Effective April 15, 2021)
- American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), Associate Member
- Transportation Research Board Affiliate
Research Interests
- Transportation and Energy Interdependencies
- Sustainable Emerging Transportation Systems
- Transportation Electrification Planning and Policy
Primary Research Area
- Transportation Engineering
Research Areas
For more information
Chapters in Books
Selected Articles in Journals
- Kontou, E., Garikapati, V., & Hou, Y. (2020). Reducing ridesourcing empty vehicle travel with future travel demand prediction. Transportation Research Part C: Emerging Technologies, 121, 102826.
- Greene, D., Kontou, E., Borlaug, B., Brooker, A., & Muratori M. (2020). Public charging infrastructure for plug-in electric vehicles: What is it worth? Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment, 78, 102182.
- Porter, A., Kontou, E., McDonald, N. C., & Evenson, K. (2020). Perceived barriers to commuter and exercise bicycling in U.S. adults: The 2017 National Household Travel Survey. Journal of Transport and Health, 16, 108820.
- Muratori, M., Kontou, E., & Eichman, J. (2019). Electricity rates for electric vehicle direct current fast charging in the United States. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 113, 109235.
- Kontou, E., Liu, C., Xie, F., Wu, X., & Lin, Z. (2019). Understanding the linkage between electric vehicle charging network coverage and charging opportunity using GPS travel data. Transportation Research Part C: Emerging Technologies, 98, 1-13.
- Kontou, E., Yin, Y., Lin, Z., & He, F. (2017). Socially optimal replacement of conventional with electric vehicles for the US household fleet. International Journal of Sustainable Transportation, 11(10), 749-763.
- Kontou, E., Yin, Y., & Ge, Y. E. (2017). Cost-effective and ecofriendly plug-in hybrid electric vehicle charging management. Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board, (2628), 87-98.
- Kontou, E., Murray-Tuite, P., & Wernstedt, K. (2017). Duration of commute travel changes in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy using accelerated failure time modeling. Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, 100, 170-181.
- Kontou, E., Murray-Tuite, P., & Wernstedt, K. (2016). Commuter Adaptation in Response to Hurricane Sandy’s Damage. Natural Hazards Review, 18(2), 04016010.
- Kontou, E., Yin, Y., & Lin, Z. (2015). Socially optimal electric driving range of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment, 39, 114-125.
Invited Lectures
- Electricity rates for electric vehicle direct current fast charging in the U.S.
- Electricity Rates for Electric Vehicle Fast Charging in the United States
- Associating ridesourcing with road safety outcomes: Insights from Austin, Texas
- Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Pricing and Worth
- Economics of Public Electric Vehicle Charging Quantifying Tangible Value and Financial Analysis
Teaching Honors
- ISEE Levenick Teaching Sustainability Fellow (2020-21)
Other Honors
- Honorarium, Humans Advancing Research in the Cloud, Pervasive Technology Institute of Indiana University (2019)