Cambridge Systematics (CS) is an independent, employee-owned firm, recognized throughout the nation as a leader in transportation.  

CS was founded in 1972 by four Massachusetts Institute of Technology professors and a colleague who shared an understanding that transportation's greatest challenges call for thoughtful, research-based solutions. To this day, our staff are dedicated to forging strong partnerships and delivering innovative solutions for our clients and their communities. 

Honoring the Past › Shaping the Future

Scroll through the timeline below for a glimpse of the key projects, milestones, and events that have happened over the course of five decades at Cambridge Systematics. 

1970s

Charting a New Course

When our five founders first open their doors for business in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it’s hard to imagine if they knew what lay ahead, including the opening of two additional offices. The oil crisis and long lines at the pump were followed by three different presidents sworn into office and the onset of deregulation of transportation in the U.S.

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1 Office
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1 Employee
1972 ›
Cambridge Systematics, Inc. is Founded

Cambridge Systematics (CS) is founded by transportation consultant William Jessiman, who serves as President, along with four MIT Professors—Marvin L. Manheim, Wayne Pecknold, Paul Roberts, and A. Sheffer Lang. Doors open for business on September 27 at 238 Main Street, Cambridge, MA. 

1972 ›
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CS Starts First Projects

A few of our first projects are for the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). Auto Ownership and Work Mode research are used to create a disaggregate, behavioral split model used to estimate sensitivity of mode choice to parking rates, road tolls, and other transportation supply

1973Richard Nixon Swears into Office
1976
Federal Aid Highway Act of 1973 is Signed into Law
1974Gerald Ford Swears into Office
1975 ›
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Lance Neumann Joins CS

Lance Neumann later serves as President and CEO from 1986 to 2011. 

1975 ›
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CS Helps Implement the First Disaggregate Demand Modeling System

CS works with the Metropolitan Transportation Commission in the San Francisco Bay Area to implement the first disaggregate demand modeling system in the U.S. 

1975
Joint Federal Highway/Transit Planning Regulations Take Effect
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CS opens an additional office in Berkley, CA
1976
Washington DC’s Metrorail Opens
1977 ›
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CS Begins International Work

CS develops a national system of disaggregate transportation demand models for the Dutch Ministry of Transportation and Public Works. 

1977Jimmy Carter Swears into Office
1977
Clean Air Acts are issued
1977
U.S. DOT Completes First Multimodal Transportation Study
1978
President Carter Signs Surface Transportation Assistance Act
1979 ›
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CS Evaluates “Downtown People Mover” System

CS evaluates the efforts of implementing a “Downtown People Mover” System in U.S. cities for the Urban Mass Transportation Administration (now the FTA). The "downtown people mover" is an automated, driverless transit car that most know now as a monorail. The monorail didn’t take off,