by Prof. S C Wong, Civil Engineering
Sep 8, 2016
Professor S C Wong, Chair Professor in Transportation Engineering and Head of the Department of Civil Engineering, was appointed the Francis S Y Bong Professorship in Engineering in July 2016.
"It is a privilege and an honour to establish an Endowed Professorship for the Faculty of Engineering at The University of Hong Kong, my alma mater. I believe that my contribution will strengthen the Faculty’s ability to generate innovative research and enrich the educational experience of future young engineers," said Ir Francis Bong.
Ir Bong is an alumnus of HKU Engineering and the former Director and Chairman of AECOM (Asia), one of the largest engineering design firms in the world. An avid supporter of HKU, Ir Bong has supported many of the University’s development activities, most recently with an Endowed Professorship in Engineering in his name.
Ir Bong was presented the Honorary University Fellowship in 2009, in recognition of his contributions to Hong Kong and academia.
“I’d like to thank Ir Francis Bong for his generous donation in setting up the Francis S Y Bong Endowed Professorship in Engineering. I am indeed flattered to be installed as the first Francis Bong Professorship. Throughout my academic career, I have benefited from the generous and unfailing support of Ir Bong and his company, then Maunsell Consultants Asia Ltd., and now AECOM.” Professor Wong said.
Professor Wong received his BSc(Eng) and MPhil degrees from the University of Hong Kong and a PhD in Transport Studies from University College London. His research interests cover a wide range of traffic and transportation subjects, including traffic signal control, continuum modeling of traffic problems, traffic flow theory, transportation network modeling, land-use and transportation problem, urban taxi services, and road safety. He has published extensively in reputable international journals, in addition to numerous keynote and invited talks. Professor Wong currently serves as Editor-in-Chief of Transportmetrica A: Transport Science, and the International Journal of Sustainable Transportation, and is also Editorial Board Member of 15 other international journals, such as IEEE Transactions on Intelligent Transportation Systems, Transportation Research Part B, Accident Analysis and Prevention, and Transport Reviews.
Professor Wong's research achievements have led to the presentation of numerous awards, such as the Best Paper Award (Editors’ Choice, Outstanding Paper) from the ASCE Journal of Transportation Engineering in 2011, Best Original Paper Award from the Hong Kong Medical Journal in 2010, Outstanding Researcher Award from the University of Hong Kong in 2009, NSFC Young Researcher Award from the National Natural Science Foundation of China in 2007, and Outstanding Young Researcher Award from the University of Hong Kong in 2000.
Locally, Professor Wong has served on numerous important committees of the HKSAR Government. He is currently a Justice of the Peace, Vice-Chairman of the Town Planning Board, and member of the Development Committee of the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority, Road Safety Research Committee, and Road Safety Campaign Committee of the HKSAR Government. In addition, he previously served on the Transport Advisory Committee, Road Safety Council, and Harbour-front Enhancement Committee. In 2003, Professor Wong was appointed by the Chief Executive of the HKSAR Government as one of three panel members on the Tuen Mun Traffic Incident Independent Expert Panel. Professor Wong was awarded the Bronze Bauhinia Star from the HKSAR Government in 2015.
From left to right: Ir Francis Bong, Dean Professor Norman Tien, and Professor S C Wong