Speaker Bio: J. Riley Edwards, Ph.D., P.E. is a Research Associate Professor in the Rail Transportation and Engineering Center (RailTEC) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (Illinois). He obtained his BS degree in Civil Engineering from Vanderbilt University, and his MS and PhD in Civil Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Dr. Edwards has worked for both CN and Hanson Professional Services, Inc. which included serving as a Construction Engineer on BNSF Railway’s Memphis Intermodal Expansion project. Since 2007, Dr. Edwards has held various positions in RailTEC at Illinois where he oversees
rail infrastructure research and advises graduate and undergraduate students concentrating in rail engineering. His research interests are railway infrastructure track system and component design and performance and failure modes associated with infrastructure components. His projects span from rail transit to heavy axle load (HAL) freight railroad applications.
