Lynette Cheah is Professor and Chair of Sustainable Transport at the University of the Sunshine Coast in Queensland. She directs the Sustainable Urban Mobility research laboratory, which develops innovations and pathways towards sustainable cities, particularly in the area of mobility. Her research focuses on developing data-driven models and digital tools to assess and reduce the environmental impacts of passenger and urban freight transport. Areas of expertise include smart cities, intelligent transport, urban freight, transport modelling and simulation, technology and policy assessment, life cycle assessments, and material flow analysis.
Lynette publishes actively in Transportation Research Record, Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment, Transportation Science, Travel Behaviour and Society, Journal of Industrial Ecology, Resource, Conservation & Recycling, and other academic journals. She has won several best paper awards, including the 2023 Best Applied Research Paper Award from the Transportation Research Board Standing Committee on Urban Freight Transportation. Her work has been profiled on ChannelNewsAsia, CNN and Nature.
Lynette's work on smart and sustainable mobility brings together perspectives from different disciplines. She collaborates readily with urban planners, architects, geographers, computer scientists and psychologists. Research partners include transport and land planning authorities, logistics service providers, and mobility companies.
Lynette is a strong believer in translating research into real-world impact. She served as Review Editor for the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) Sixth Assessment Report and is Coordinating Lead Author for UN Environment Programme’s Global Environment Outlook (GEO-7) report. From 2019 to 2024, she was a member of Singapore’s Public Transport Council, promoting sustainable, affordable, and inclusive public transport for all.
Prior to joining UniSC, Lynette was a tenured faculty member at Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) and a Visiting Professor at the University of Victoria in British Columbia, Canada. As an active member in her academic communities, Lynette Cheah is Editor for Transportation Research Record and Journal of Industrial Ecology. She obtained her Ph.D. in Engineering Systems from MIT and Master’s in Management Science from Stanford University.
Professional Memberships
- International Society of Industrial Ecology
Awards/Fellowships
- 2023 Co-author, Best Applied Research Paper Award, TRB Standing Committee on Urban Freight Transportation (AT025)
- 2021 Google exploreCS Research Award
- 2020 Co-author, Best Paper Award, Resources, Conservation & Recycling journal
- 2020 Co-author, Graedel Prize for the Best Paper by a Junior Author, Journal of Industrial Ecology
- 2018 Institution of Engineers Singapore Outstanding Volunteer Award
- 2017 Finalist, ASEAN-U.S. Science Prize for Women
- 2013 $100K Singapore Challenge prize, Global Young Scientists Summit
Professional Social Media
Current Research Projects
• Electric mobility – life cycle assessment and light commercial delivery fleet conversion planning
• Low carbon transport – Material stock and embodied carbon in land transport infrastructure
• Transport equity – Feasibility study for a Universal Basic Mobility trial
Selection of Past Research Projects
• Exploring the potential for crowdshipping using public transport
• Life cycle assessment of diesel and alternative fuel trucks
• Public acceptance of Autonomous Vehicles (AVs)
• Urban freight and heavy vehicles study
• Foresight study on urban mobility: Moving Singapore in 2040
• Material and energy Impacts of vehicle lightweighting
Research areas
- Electric mobility
- Low carbon transport
- Transport equity