What Institute for Transport Planning and Systems - ETH Zurich does

The Institute for Transport Planning and Systems (IVT) is an academic research institute within ETH Zurich's Department of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering (D-BAUG), located at Stefano-Franscini-Platz 5 on the Hönggerberg campus in Zurich, Switzerland. IVT is organized into three research groups: Transport and Mobility Planning (TMP), Transport Systems (TS), and Road Traffic Engineering (SVT). The institute conducts fundamental and applied research on transport demand modeling, network optimization, railway operations, traffic engineering, and mobility behavior, employing approximately 22 listed personnel with an effective research community of 25-40 across the three groups. Its research infrastructure includes the open-source MATSim agent-based simulation framework, the longitudinal Swiss Mobility Panel, the Swiss Verkehrsatlas, and the Sustainable Urban Transitions (SUT) Lab.

IVT's technology stack centers on agent-based simulation (MATSim) for demand and network modeling, the Swiss Mobility Panel for continuous behavioral data collection, the Swiss Verkehrsatlas for spatial analysis, and a recently established SUT Lab that ingests anonymized real-world shared micromobility data from Bolt for urban mobility research. The institute publishes extensively in peer-reviewed venues, organizes the annual Swiss Transport Research Conference (STRC, running since 2001), and disseminates findings through seminars, workshops, public lectures, and Swiss and international media.

IVT is a non-profit academic unit with no commercial products or pricing. Revenue flows from ETH Zurich's institutional budget and competitively awarded research grants from Swiss federal agencies (SNF, Innosuisse, FEDRO, ARE, BFE), industry partners (SBB Research Fund, Bolt Urban Fund), and international programs (DUT Partnership, national research councils in Germany, France, and Norway). Its customer base is entirely public-sector: Swiss federal offices, Swiss municipal governments (Zurich, Basel), and a growing set of European city governments (Lisbon, Hannover, Seville) collaborating through the SUT Lab. Teaching revenue flows indirectly through ETH's Civil Engineering program specializing in Transport Systems.

Name

Institute for Transport Planning and Systems - ETH Zurich

Legal name

Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich (ETH Zürich)

Website

https://ivt.ethz.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

1855

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

IVT is an ETH Zurich academic research institute organized into three groups (Transport and Mobility Planning, Transport Systems, Road Traffic Engineering) that conducts research, doctoral training, and policy advisory work for Swiss federal agencies, municipal governments, and international academic and industry partners, using MATSim agent-based simulation and the Swiss Mobility Panel.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Academic Transport Research

NAICS

Other Support Activities for Transportation (4889)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700), Transportation Services (4700)

akta.pro primary industry

Transportation & Infrastructure Planning (BPAHAKAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Transportation & Traffic Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAC), Traffic Management & Intelligent Transportation Systems (Signals, TMCs, Congestion) (BPAIALAC)

Keywords

• Transport research
• Mobility planning
• Traffic engineering
• Railway systems
• Urban mobility

Headquarters

HQ city

Zurich

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Research Grants and Institutional Funding: IVT operates as part of ETH Zurich and relies primarily on competitively awarded research grants from Swiss national funding bodies (Swiss National Science Foundation/SNF, Innosuisse), federal agencies (Federal Office for Roads/FEDRO, Federal Office for Spatial Development/ARE, Federal Office of Energy/BFE), industry partners (SBB Research Fund, Bolt Urban Fund), and international programs (DUT Partnership, national research councils of Germany/ANR/France/NRC/Norway). Additional institutional funding from ETH Zurich's D-BAUG department supports professorship chairs and laboratory infrastructure.
2. Teaching and Education: IVT delivers undergraduate and graduate education within ETH Zurich's Civil Engineering program (specialization in Transport Systems), doctoral training, and executive education. Revenue flows indirectly through ETH's institutional budget tied to teaching mandates.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

IVT conducts academic research and delivers higher-education programs in transport planning and systems, organized across three research groups: Transport and Mobility Planning (TMP), Transport Systems (TS), and Road Traffic Engineering (SVT). Its outputs include peer-reviewed research, commissioned policy studies for Swiss federal and municipal authorities, longitudinal mobility datasets, agent-based simulation tools (MATSim), and doctoral training within ETH Zurich's Civil Engineering program.

Product overview

The Institute for Transport Planning and Systems (IVT) at ETH Zurich is a university research institute organized into three research groups (Transport and Mobility Planning/TMP, Transport Systems/TS, and Road Traffic Engineering/SVT) focused on transport planning and systems research. The institute's offerings include ongoing research initiatives like the Swiss Mobility Panel tracking Swiss mobility behavior, and time-bound research projects such as the Sustainable Urban Transitions Lab (SUT Lab) examining micromobility with industry partners, the FREIGHT-SHOPPING NEXUS (FRESH) project studying urban logistics in European cities, the Fernreisen in Europa project analyzing rail-air competition, and the Mobilitäts- und Erreichbarkeitsbefragung 2025 survey on Zurich mobility. Research tools include the Swiss Traffic Atlas for spatial analysis and MATSim agent-based modeling software for transport simulation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Sustainable Urban Transitions Lab (SUT Lab): Research laboratory focused on sustainable urban mobility transitions, established in partnership with Bolt to study micromobility and urban transport in European cities including Lisbon, Hannover, and Seville.
• Traffic and Mobility Planning (TMP)
• Transport Systems (TS)
• Road Traffic Engineering (SVT)

Products and services

• Institute for Transport Planning and Systems (IVT) Research and Education Programs
• Swiss Mobility Panel (Schweizer Mobilitätspanel)
• FRESH Project (FREight-SHopping nexus in urban outskirts and beyond)
• Fernreisen in Europa (Long-distance Travel in Europe)
• Mobilitäts- und Erreichbarkeitsbefragung 2025 (Mobility and Accessibility Survey 2025)
• Sustainable Urban Transitions Lab (SUT Lab)
• Schweizer Verkehrsatlas (Swiss Traffic Atlas)
• MATSim (Agent-Based Modeling Software)

Quantifiable outcome

• Three-year E-Bike City study demonstrated that half of Zurich's road space could be allocated to cycling without additional car congestion, with car routes extending by up to 30%
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

17 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• BoltcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2025Bolt and ETH Zurich's SUT Lab (Sustainable Urban Transitions Lab) partnered to analyze shared micromobility data for urban mobility interventions. Bolt provides anonymized data from e-scooters, e-bikes, and ride-hailing services in partner cities. The SUT Lab — led by Prof. Eva Heinen and Prof. Bryan Adey — uses this data to develop evidence-based mobility policy recommendations for cities including Lisbon, Hannover, and Seville. Duration: April 2025 to April 2027, funded by the Bolt Urban Fund.
• Swiss Federal Office for Roads (FEDRO/ASTRA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFEDRO commissions IVT for research on road infrastructure, traffic engineering, and transport policy. IVT contributes expertise on ramp-metering strategies, freeway operations, and road safety analysis.
• Swiss Association of Road and Transport Engineers (VSS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVSS develops and maintains standards and guides for road and transport engineering requirements in Switzerland. IVT researchers (Prof. Francesco Corman, Prof. Eva Heinen) serve on VSS's scientific council, strengthening the scientific foundation of the association's standards work.
• Swiss Association of Traffic Engineers and Experts (SVI)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSVI collaborates with IVT on applied research in traffic engineering and transport planning, supporting the translation of academic findings into practice.
• DUT - Driving Urban Transitions PartnershipcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDUT is an intergovernmental research and innovation program co-financed by 28 European countries and the European Commission. IVT participates in the FRESH project (FREight-SHopping nexus, 2024–2026) examining integrated passenger and freight transport planning in Dortmund, Paris, and Trondheim. National funding from DLR (Germany), ANR (France), and NRC (Norway).
• TRANSP-OR - Transport and Mobility Laboratory EPFLminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic collaboration between IVT and EPFL's TRANSP-OR lab on transport modeling and optimization methodologies, sharing research approaches and participating jointly in conferences including STRC.
• ILS - Institute for Land and Sea Transport, TU BerlinminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner in agent-based transport modeling research, collaborating on behavioral transfer and demand modeling methodologies through the VPL chair's research network.
• UDL - Urban Data LabminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on urban data analysis and accessibility research, contributing to IVT's spatial analysis and mobility planning methodologies.
• Federal Office for Spatial Development (ARE)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerARE commissioned IVT for the national Verkehr 2045 (Transport 2045) study, developing Switzerland's national passenger transport model (NPVM) and providing policy recommendations for prioritizing national transport infrastructure investments.
• Keio University, JapanminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerExchange program and potential joint research collaboration between ETH and Keio University. Prof. Yoshiki Yamagata from Keio's Graduate School of SDM visited IVT in August 2026 for a TMP seminar and discussions on collaborative research.
• Technical University of Dresden (TUD), GermanyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProf. Nikola Bešinović from TUD gave an IVT seminar on machine learning for real-time train rescheduling and railway network vulnerability. Prof. em. Kay Axhausen completed a research stay at TUD's Chair of Mobility Systems Planning in January 2026.
• University of Cambridge, UKminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDr. Li Wan from Cambridge gave an IVT/IRL seminar on density, densification, and travel using data from the English National Travel Survey.
• Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, IndiaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProf. Ashish Verma from IISc gave an IVT seminar on traffic and crowd flow modeling in the Indian context, expanding IVT's international research network.
• Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNTNU is a partner in the FRESH project (DUT-funded) examining freight-shopping nexus in Trondheim. Prof. Trude Tørset leads NTNU's research contribution. Helge Hillnhütter from NTNU's Department of Architecture and Planning also gave an IVT seminar on walking and public transport.
• Université Gustave Eiffel, FranceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversité Gustave Eiffel is a partner in the FRESH project (DUT-funded) examining freight-shopping nexus in Paris. Prof. Laetitia Dablanc leads urban logistics research. Dr. Paola Pellegrini co-authored the ICIRT 2025 Best Student Paper with IVT researchers.
• Technische Universität Dortmund, GermanyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTU Dortmund is a partner in the FRESH project (DUT-funded), examining freight-shopping nexus in Dortmund. Prof. Frank Othengrafen leads the city's spatial planning analysis component.
• Cities of Hannover, Seville, and LisbonminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThrough the SUT Lab, IVT collaborates directly with the cities of Hannover and Seville (six-month shared micromobility studies) and Lisbon (live street trials for road space reallocation), using Bolt data for evidence-based urban mobility planning.

Scale indicators3 records

Direct peers

• KTH Royal Institute of Technology - Transport and Systems Analysis: Swedish top-tier technical university with strong transport research in urban mobility, infrastructure planning, and traffic flow. Comparable institute structure and Scandinavian reference comparable to ETH Zurich.
• UC Berkeley Institute of Transportation Studies (ITS): Long-established academic transport research center with strong policy engagement, sustainable mobility research, and federal/state government partnerships directly comparable to IVT's mandate.
• MIT Center for Transportation and Logistics (CTL): Premier global transport research center combining modeling, behavior, and supply-chain research. Shares the academic institute + industry/government commissioning model that IVT operates within.
• University of Cambridge - Transport Research Group: Active collaborator with IVT and a globally recognized transport research center covering behavior, accessibility, and policy. Shares academic institute + commissioned research operating model.
• TU Berlin - Institute for Land and Sea Transport Systems (ILS): Academic partner of IVT and co-originator of the MATSim agent-based simulation framework. Shares identical methodological foundations and complements IVT within the same research network.
• University of Leeds - Institute for Transport Studies (ITS): Established UK transport research institute with similar coverage of demand modeling, public transport planning, and policy evaluation commissioned by national government.
• Imperial College London - Transport and Mobility Research: Leading UK transport research group covering urban mobility, freight, traffic engineering, and transport modeling. Comparable in research scope and academic/commissioned dual model.
• TU Munich - Department of Mobility and Transport: Leading German technical university with active transport research in traffic engineering, public transport optimization, and micromobility. Top European peer to IVT in research breadth and academic standing.
• EPFL - TRANSP-OR Transport and Mobility Laboratory: Swiss sister institute collaborating closely with IVT on transport modeling, optimization, and operations research. Highly comparable in mission, geography, and Swiss federal commissioning context.
• TU Delft - Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Transport & Planning: One of Europe's leading transport planning research groups with strong focus on travel behavior, demand modeling, and traffic management. Highly comparable to IVT in scope of research, public-sector commissioning model, and use of agent-based simulation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/IVT_ETH
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/school/institute-for-transport-planning-and-systems-at-eth-zurich

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Institute for Transport Planning and Systems - ETH Zurich