Decarbonized and Resilient Urban Transport Infrastructure

Dear Colleagues,

(1) Focus, Scope, and Purpose

a. Focus

This Special Issue focuses on the transition toward low-carbon and climate-resilient urban transport infrastructure, emphasizing the integration of engineering, planning, and digital innovation. It targets research that addresses both mitigation (decarbonisation) and adaptation (resilience) in transport infrastructures under increasing environmental, climatic, and socio-economic pressures.

The issue will particularly highlight:

• Infrastructure design and materials for low-carbon transport systems;
• Climate-resilient road and transport networks;
• AI and digital technologies in sustainable transport planning and operations;
• Integrated urban mobility systems supporting decarbonisation goals.

b. Scope

This Special Issue has a multidisciplinary scope, spanning civil engineering, urban planning, transport engineering, environmental science, and data-driven systems. We encourage various contributions focusing on topics ranging from materials and infrastructure components to network-level and city-wide transport systems.

Key thematic areas include:

• Low-carbon infrastructure materials and construction practices, including non-conventional and recycled materials;
• Climate resilience of transport infrastructure, including vulnerability assessment, adaptation strategies, and lifecycle performance;
• AI, machine learning, and digital twins for transport system optimization and emissions reduction;
• Electrification and alternative fuels infrastructure (EV charging and hydrogen systems);
• Nature-based and hybrid infrastructure solutions for urban transport corridors;
• Policy, governance, and financing mechanisms supporting decarbonised transport systems;
• Equity and accessibility in sustainable urban mobility transitions.

c. Purpose

The purpose of this Special Issue is to:

• Advance integrated knowledge at the intersection of decarbonisation and resilience in urban transport infrastructure;
• Bridge the gap between theoretical research and applied engineering solutions;
• Showcase innovative, data-driven, and interdisciplinary approaches, including AI-enabled systems;
• Provide evidence-based insights for policymakers, practitioners, and researchers working toward a sustainable urban future;
• Support global agendas such as net-zero emission targets and climate adaptation strategies in cities.

(2) Relationship to the Existing Literature

The existing literature on urban transport sustainability has traditionally evolved along two largely parallel streams:

1. Decarbonisation-focused research, which emphasizes emissions reduction through electrification, modal shifts, and energy-efficient systems;
2. Resilience-focused research, which addresses infrastructure robustness and adaptation to climate risks such as flooding, heat stress, and extreme events.

While both domains are well-established, there is a notable gap in integrative research that simultaneously addresses carbon neutrality and climate resilience within urban transport infrastructure systems.

This Special Issue aims to bridge this gap by:

• Promoting systems-level thinking, linking infrastructure materials, design, operations, and policy;
• Highlighting co-benefits and trade-offs between decarbonisation and resilience strategies;
• Incorporating emerging technologies (e.g., AI, digital twins) that are underrepresented in traditional infrastructure literature;
• Expanding the discourse to include non-conventional materials and innovative construction methods, which remain fragmented across engineering subfields;
• Encouraging cross-sectoral and interdisciplinary perspectives, aligning with the journal’s urban systems approach.

Prof. Dr. Mohamed M. H. Mostafa
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Urban Science is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• decarbonisation
• urban transport infrastructure
• climate resilience
• sustainable mobility
• artificial intelligence in transport
• low-carbon materials
• transport system adaptation
• smart cities
• infrastructure lifecycle assessment
• urban sustainability