Professor Emeritus Ralph Gakenheimer, mobility planner and champion of international development, dies at 89 | MIT news

Ralph Gakenheimer, MIT professor emeritus of urban planning, died June 17 in Concord, Massachusetts. He was 89 years old.

A faculty member in the Department of Urban Studies and Planning (DUSP), Gakenheimer focused his research on the dynamic relationship between how we classify and use land and the mobility choices individuals make in cities. He was particularly interested in the intentions and choices behind choosing a particular mode of mobility and how those choices intersect with sustainability and accessibility in developing countries.

During his 40-year tenure at MIT, Gakenheimer also served as an advisor to the World Bank and visiting professor at various universities including the University of Paris XII, the University of California at Berkeley, and the Universidad de Los Andes (Bogota), as well as being a visiting fellow at Balliol College, Oxford. He was a Fulbright scholar and chaired several international committees, including the United Nations-appointed committee that oversaw the comprehensive planning of the city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia.

Many of us at DUSP were influenced by Ralph in many ways, says Chris Zegras, professor of mobility and urban planning and DUSP department head. Personally, it is no exaggeration to say that he is the reason I am at MIT. He was an advisor, mentor, role model, dear friend, colleague, and I feel extremely privileged to have had the opportunity to have him play those roles in my life. It's a sad day, but I take comfort in thinking about the endless ways his wisdom, knowledge, good humor and spirit live on.

Born in Baltimore, Maryland, Gakenheimer graduated from Towson High School, where he was recently inducted into its hall of fame for his career achievements. He received a bachelor's degree in engineering science from Johns Hopkins University. Throughout his high school and college years, he helped out at the family pharmacy, where he often worked as a gas drinker. He went on to earn a master's degree in regional planning from Cornell University and a doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania. Before joining the faculty at MIT in 1969, Gakenheimer taught for seven years at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

The range of his academic background is reflected in his influential book, Transportation Planning in Response to Controversy: The Case of Boston (MIT Press, 1976). Ralphs' scholarship on the 1960s internal beltway struggle is a must for anyone seriously concerned with the state of transportation planning in any era, says Karilyn Crockett, assistant professor of urban history, public policy and planning at DUSP. His brilliant, ground-breaking work, Transport Planning as a Response to Controversy, is an exciting example of telling a sprawling urban story at the scale of the people. After every interaction with Ralph, I left feeling empowered and much smarter, what I call the Ralph Effect. The Ralph Effect is being around someone whose brilliance is so bright that it amplifies your own.

Gakenheimer brought a deep consideration to his work as an international development scholar, engaging with a variety of projects focused on infrastructure delivery and sustainable development. Fittingly for an advocate of responsible transportation, Gakenheimer often commuted to MIT by bicycle.

Describing an academic as thoughtful is probably an overstatement, says Joseph Coughlin, director of the MIT AgeLab and head of the U.S. Department of Transportation's New England University Transportation Center. When I think of Ralph, though, I can't think of a better word. Ralph was thoughtful of his colleagues and students. He thought about the world we are imagining and leaving behind. He was, of course, thoughtful in changing and pulling the strings of even the most arcane theory. His soft-spoken demeanor and knowledge will be missed here and in the many places and spaces he touched over the years.

Gakenheimer is survived by his wife, Caroline (Bierer) Gakenheimer; his daughters, Rachel Gakenheimer MCP 99 and Katherine Gakenheimer; his grandchildren, Jesse and Vienne Begin; and his brothers, David and Martin Gakenheimer.

Donations may be made in the Gakenheimers' memory Bikes Not Bombsa charity for his heart.