MTI News

Dear Reader,

This month, we’re recognizing excellence across the MTI community—from the people advancing transportation to the research and collaboration shaping its future. 

In this Issue:

Automated Battery Management Systems for Electric Vehicles

Electric vehicle (EV) safety, reliability, and performance depend heavily on effective battery management. As EV adoption continues to grow, improving battery efficiency and lifespan is increasingly important for reducing costs, enhancing vehicle reliability, and strengthening public trust. This report examines technologies and challenges associated with Battery Management Systems (BMS), with particular attention to BMS circuit designs and active cell balancing systems, which redistribute energy among battery cells to maintain consistent performance.

The study reviews various active balancing circuit designs, comparing their operating principles, benefits, and limitations, while also examining the algorithms that guide battery balancing. Main design challenges include improving efficiency, controlling costs, ensuring reliability and scalability, and accurately assessing battery conditions to support real-time decision-making under changing operating conditions. The report also highlights recent advances in balancing algorithms and their potential to improve BMS performance. By providing a comprehensive assessment of circuit designs and balancing strategies, the research offers insights for optimizing battery management systems and ultimately supporting safer, more affordable, and more reliable electric vehicles.

Preparing Today’s Workforce for Tomorrow’s Autonomous Transportation: Bridging Electrical and Civil Engineering Disciplines

As autonomous vehicles (AVs) continue to advance, the transportation workforce will need professionals with expertise that spans multiple engineering disciplines. While many AV workforce programs focus on electrical engineering, computer science, and mechanical engineering, transportation engineering plays an equally important role in areas such as roadway infrastructure, traffic operations, safety, and mobility.

This study addresses that need through the development and evaluation of the Workforce for Autonomous Vehicle Engineering (WAVE) certificate program at California State University, Sacramento. Designed to connect transportation and electrical engineering, the seven-week program combined classroom-based learning with hands-on laboratory experience. Students explored topics ranging from traffic operations, roadway design, and intelligent transportation systems to sensing technologies, artificial intelligence, control systems, and communications. Fifty-three civil and electrical engineering students participated in the program and gained practical experience using the QCar autonomous vehicle platform.

Surveys, student evaluations, and feedback from industry experts showed meaningful improvements in students’ knowledge and confidence, along with strong support for the program’s interdisciplinary approach and workforce relevance. The findings demonstrate how combining transportation and electrical engineering with experiential learning can provide an effective model for preparing the next generation of professionals for careers in the rapidly evolving AV industry.

Wednesday, September 9, 2026

Ballroom, The National Press Club, 529 14th Street NW Washington, DC 20045

2:00-7:00p.m. (ET) | Link to Register ($75 per person)

The Mineta Forum on Transportation Policy & Leadership: Honoring a Legacy of Service

A Convening Marking 25 Years Since September 11, 2001

Twenty-five years ago, on September 11, our nation experienced a moment that would forever alter its path. After the Twin Towers were hit, then-Secretary of Transportation Norman Y. Mineta called for the grounding of every plane in American airspace—an unprecedented act that, to this day, has reshaped how we understand leadership.

This September 9th, join bipartisan national experts in Washington, D.C. as they honor Secretary Mineta’s legacy, commemorate those lost, and work together to understand challenges and maximize opportunities for the future of American mobility.

This event unites leaders across the aisle, including experts who worked alongside Secretary Mineta, those who have helped transform the ways we move people and goods, and those who continue to collaborate to advance Mineta’s legacy of bipartisan progress for the benefit of the American people. 

Connect with us as we reflect on and discuss policy, transportation security, and the industry workforce—and as we collaborate to move mobility and the nation forward together.