PhD student - Passenger behavioural response to planned railway maintenance disruptions ETH Zürich in Switzerland

PhD opportunity at ETH Zurich in the Chair of Transportation and Mobility Planning, led by Professor Dr. Eva Heinen, within the Institute for Transport Planning and Systems at the Department of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering (D-BAUG).

This doctoral project studies passenger behavioural response to planned railway maintenance disruptions in Switzerland. The research focuses on understanding how planned interventions in rail infrastructure affect traveller decisions through increased travel times, additional transfers, reduced frequency, delays, crowding, and replacement bus services. The project aims to capture both short-term and long-term effects, including impacts on travel choice, route choice, mode substitution, destination choice, trust in the railway operator, reputation, and public support for railway investment.

The successful candidate will help develop revealed preference and stated preference surveys, design longitudinal data collection, estimate passenger response models, and derive elasticities for different service-quality impacts. A further component of the research is to build a methodology for assessing long-term impacts of experienced disruptions on trust and reputation, alongside their broader implications for rail policy and investment decisions. The work is intended to support a wider research project on maintenance interventions and uncertainty in railway planning.

Profile and eligibility: applicants should have an MSc in transportation, civil engineering, computer science, spatial planning, geography, geoinformation, psychology, economics, or a closely related field, and must have completed the MSc before starting. Experience in discrete choice modelling and/or survey design is important. Strong written and spoken English is required; German is an advantage because of collaboration with Swiss project partners. The post also calls for data analysis and/or programming skills, with familiarity in tools such as R, Python, GIS software, or Stata welcomed. The group is looking for a motivated, self-organised, responsible candidate with good teamwork, communication, and problem-solving skills, and an interest in scientific research, publications, teaching, and examinations.

Practical details: the intended start date is January or early February 2027, with an initial contract of 18 months and a total doctoral duration of about 4 years, subject to an aptitude colloquium at the end of the first year. Applications are accepted only via ETH Zurich’s online application portal.

How to apply: submit a short motivation letter, the names and email addresses of 2–5 referees, one or two outputs demonstrating relevant skills, a complete overview of your grades, and your potential start date. If you have not yet completed your MSc, indicate when you expect proof of completion. Questions about the position should be directed to Prof. Dr. Eva Heinen at eheinen@ethz.ch.