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Since the 1970s, with the development of science and technology, as well as the social progress, more and more production management systems emerge in large numbers, such as modern industry, transportation, biology, ecology, and military command, and these systems also become increasing.ly complex. Meanwhile, the production process develops rapidly, and the control for the process in engineering and social system is therefore ubiquitously needed.
System engineering is an applicable and practical science. It is a new discipline shaped under the condition of a combination of system science and modern management science, information science, control science, and computer science. Also, it is a significant trend to apply the system science theories to a department, a profession or a discipline in the scientific development nowadays. The establishment and the application of system science promote a rapid development, which is the environment for the emergence and development of Transportation System Engineering. Nowadays, system science has permeated and integrated several disciplines, such as control science, information science, economic management science, biology and environmental science, transportation science, etc. With this situation, it is consequent that the transportation system is formed by a combination of transport and system science. Under the influence of system engineering proposed by Academician Xuesen Qian, Transportation System Engineering which is combined by the transport and system engineering was born in the 1980s, and were set foot in a new development area since then.
The systems characterized by their large-scale, complex structure, integrated functions, multi-factors, and complex control. By consequence, the evaluation, design, control, and management for this massive and complex system must be optimized and controlled by making full use of the system science, as well as the theories and methods in system engineering. This development, in turn, brings about a breakthrough from traditional theories, implementations, and methods to optimal control and harmonized management of a big system. In fact, transportation systems are big and complicated systems because the factor of 'humanity' plays a very important role in each system.
Five kinds of modern transportation namely water, highway, railway, aviation, pipeline have gradually developed into a coordinated and comprehensive transport system currently. Therefore, for people engaged in transportation management, it will be of great significance to establish the idea of the transportation system and master the methods of Transportation System Engineering. Along with the rapid development of modern comprehensive transport system, according to the requirements of cultivating the interdisciplinary talents, the authors published the Transportation System Engineering based on the research results.