What I do

I am a Professor in the Department of Geography & the Environment specializing in transportation, urban studies, and urban & regional planning and policy.

For the most current information on Dr. Goetz's work, visit his Department of Geography profile.

Professional Biography

Andrew R. Goetz is a Professor in the Department of Geography & the Environment and a faculty associate in the Transportation Institute and the Urban Studies Program at the University of Denver. He received his PhD degree in Geography from The Ohio State University (1987), MA degree in Geography from Kent State University (1984), and BA degree in Geography from Northwestern University (1980). He has academic interests in the following areas: transportation, urban, and economic geography; urban, metropolitan, and statewide transportation planning and policy; transportation infrastructure and urban/economic growth; rail transit systems; transit-oriented development; smart growth planning; sustainability; high-speed rail; intermodal transportation; freight transportation; air transportation; airport planning; and globalization. He is currently a member of the Statewide Freight Advisory Council at the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), and has served on the State Freight and Passenger Rail Plan Working Group at CDOT, the Denver International Airport (DIA) Community Focus Group, the Transportation Advisory Committee for the City and County of Denver’s Strategic Transportation Plan, and the Transportation Advisory Committee for the Denver Regional Council of Governments [DRCOG]. Dr. Goetz served as associate editor of the Journal of Transport Geography from 2004-2012, and still serves on its editorial board along with the journals Transport Reviews and the World Review of Intermodal Transportation Research. He is the treasurer of the Commission on Transport and Geography in the International Geographical Union, and is co-chair of the research cluster on network impacts in NECTAR—the Network of European Communications and Transport Activities Research. He received the 2010 Edward L. Ullman Award from the American Association of Geographers for Significant Contributions to Transportation Geography.

Degree(s)

  • Ph.D., Geography, Ohio State University, 1987
  • MA, Geography, Kent State University, 1984
  • BA, Geography, Northwestern University, 1980

Professional Affiliations

  • American Association of Geographers
  • International Geographical Union Commission on Transport and Geography
  • Network on European Communication and Transport Activities Research-Scientific Committee, Cluster 1 (Transport Infrastructure Impacts and Evaluation)
  • Transportation Research Board
  • Air Transport Research Society
  • Transportation Research Forum

Research

Most of my research pertains to the study of transportation and cities. My overall research goals involve seeking deeper knowledge in my areas of interest, including: 1) how transportation affects and is affected by urban form, 2) how transportation can be more effective and sustainable, 3) how cities can become better and more sustainable places.

I am a co-author of four books, including Metropolitan Denver: Growth and Change in the Mile-High City (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2018), The Geographies of Air Transport (Ashgate, 2014), Denver International Airport: Lessons Learned (McGraw Hill, 1997), and Airline Deregulation and Laissez-Faire Mythology (Quorum, 1992). I have published over 60 peer-reviewed book chapters and articles in journals such as The Journal of Transport Geography, Urban Studies, Cities, Annals of the American Association of Geographers, The Professional Geographer, Transportation Research Part A, Transportation Research Record, and Publius: The Journal of Federalism. I have served as a principal investigator on over 30 funded research projects and fellowships, including an assessment of transportation planning at metropolitan planning organizations commissioned by the U.S. Congress, an assessment of intermodal transportation planning at state departments of transportation, funding and financing of transit infrastructure, urban goods movement and local climate action plans, international experiences with high-speed rail and implications for the US, and regional collaboration in support of transit infrastructure provision.

Areas of Research

  • transportation geography
  • urban geography
  • economic geography
  • transportation planning
  • transportation policy
  • urban planning
  • urban policy
  • transportation infrastructure and urban/economic growth
  • rail transit systems
  • transit-oriented development
  • smart growth planning
  • sustainability
  • high-speed rail
  • intermodal transportation
  • freight transportation
  • air transportation
  • airport planning
  • globalization.

Key Projects

  • Innovative Approaches to Improved Intermodal Transportation Infrastructure Funding and Financing through Public-Private Partnerships.
  • Metropolitan Planning Organization Study
  • Passenger Rail and Freight Rail Partnerships: Case Studies in Boston, Chicago, and Denver
  • Urban Goods Movement and Local Climate Action Plans: Assessing strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from urban freight transportation
  • Senior Visiting Fellowship

Featured Publications

Goetz, A. R., & Boschmann, E. (2018). Metropolitan Denver: Growth and Change in the Mile High City. University of Penn Press.

Goetz, A. R., & Budd, L. C. S. (Eds.). (2014). The Geographies of Air Transport. Ashgate.

Goetz, A. R., Szyliowicz, J. S., & Dempsey, P. S. (1997). Denver International Airport: Lessons Learned. Denver International Airport: Lessons Learned. New York, US: McGraw-Hill.

Goetz, A. R., & Dempsey, P. S. (1996). Airline Deregulation and Laissez-Faire Mythology (Japanese Language Edition). Airline Deregulation and Laissez-Faire Mythology. Westport,CT: Greenwood Press.

Performances

Presentations

Goetz, A. R. (2015). Transport investment and smart growth planning: Travel behavior and land use impacts of rail transit and transit-oriented development in Denver, Colorado, USA. International Geographical Union Regional Conference. Moscow, Russia: International Geographical Union.

Goetz, A. R. (2017). Air Transport, Airports, and Economic Development. Research Seminar. Bologna, Italy: Department of Statistical Sciences, University of Bologna.

Goetz, A. R. (2011). Investment in Transport Infrastrucutre and Economic Devlopment: Recent Debates in the United States. Oxford, UK: Transport Studies Unit, School of Geography and the Environment, Oxford University.

Goetz, A. R., & Perl, A. (2016). Getting up to speed: Assessing the Usable Knowledge from Global High Speed Rail Experience for the United States. International Geographical Congress. Beijing, China: International Geographical Union.

Goetz, A. R. (2007). Bridging the Qualitative-Quantitative Divide in Transport Geography. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Institute of Geography, University of Buenos Aires.

Awards

  • 2010 Edward L. Ullman Award for Significant Contributions to Transportation Geography, Association of American Geographers
  • Malcolm L. Comeaux Honorary Lecture, School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning, Arizona State University
  • Hoyle Lecture in Transport Geography, Transport Geography Research Group, Royal Geographic Society
  • Douglas K. Fleming Honorary Lecture in Transportation Geography, Association of American Geographers
  • Senior Visiting Fellowship , University of Bologna Institute of Advanced Studies