ITE Canada is deeply saddened by the passing of Dr. Stan Teply. A true luminary in the field of transportation engineering, Stan’s extraordinary career spanned decades, continents, and disciplines, leaving a profound impact on our profession and our community. He is the namesake of our highest technical award and one of only six ITE Honorary Members from Canada.
Stan’s journey began in Czechoslovakia, where he served as a transportation engineer and municipal manager in Prague during the transformative era of the “Prague Spring.” After the 1968 invasion, he courageously emigrated to West Germany, continuing his work in traffic control and electronics. In 1973, Stan made his way to Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, where he became a Senior Transportation Consultant and later joined the University of Alberta as a Professor of Transportation Engineering, a role he held until becoming Professor Emeritus in 1999.
Stan’s achievements were as diverse as they were influential. He was instrumental in planning Prague’s subway system, contributed to transportation projects across Europe, Hong Kong, Kuwait, and Canada, and authored or co-authored 13 books and more than 100 papers. His expertise profoundly shaped traffic control systems, public transit, and transportation planning on a global scale. Renowned for his vision and dedication, Stan served as a key coordinator for the Highway Capacity Manual and was a respected contributor to the Transportation Research Board and numerous professional committees.
Beyond his remarkable professional achievements, Stan was a passionate advocate for education and collaboration. As the founding president of ITE’s Northern Alberta Section, he fostered connections among transportation professionals. Known as an inspiring mentor, he received numerous teaching awards and recognitions, including our prestigious and highest honour, the H. Robert Burton Distinguished Service Award, in 1997.
Stan’s legacy continues to resonate through ITE Canada’s Stan Teply Outstanding Technical Project Award, which bears his name and honours his dedication to technical excellence in transportation planning and engineering.
Dr. Teply’s contributions to our field and the lives he touched will never be forgotten. We extend our heartfelt condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues. His legacy will continue to inspire transportation professionals across Canada.
– Original text courtesy of ITE International
Tributes to Dr. Teply from the transportation community
It is difficult to find words to express my gratitude to Stan as a teacher, mentor, supervisor, colleague and friend over more than 45 years. I can honestly say that Stan has had more positive influence on my professional education and career than anyone else, and has always been there to guide me through some of the difficult challenges along the way. My story is only one of many engineers whose careers have been guided through Stan’s teaching and advice.
Brice Stephenson
Retired, City of Edmonton
Stan was my Supervisor for my Masters degree. A consummate professional with a warm heart for his students, I remember great Christmas parties at his home! He was the person that got me interested in transportation engineering as an undergraduate and then approached me to pursue a Masters degree. I considered Stan a mentor, a friend and an outstanding example of what a transportation engineer should aspire to. Thank you Stan for all that you did for this, once young, engineer.
Gary Vlieg
Vice President, CTS
My first job after graduation was with the City of Edmonton in 1980. That’s where I met Stan, a wise and caring person. At the time, he was developing the first Canadian Capacity Guide (CCG) and as a junior at the City, I was to assist in site observations, counting and measuring gaps, volumes, etc. He instilled in me a foundation of good understanding of basics of human factors, capacity calculations, etc, which stuck with me through my entire career. Stan had not only ingrained good technical foundations with in me but also demonstrated a humble, intelligent, warm, caring approach to working with colleagues and friends. A great example and a great guy!
Michael Skene
Director and Principal, Watt Consulting Group
Dr. Stan Teply was well recognized as a leading educator and researcher in traffic engineering in Canada for many decades. His leadership on the Canadian Capacity Guide for Signalized Intersections and his work with the Transportation Research Board on the Highway Capacity Manual are just a few of his contributions. He also helped with the organization of the UofA/UofC joint transportation meetings that involved grad students and professors from both universities. As well Dr. Teply was an external examiner on theses at the UofC and he invited me to be an external examiner of theses at UofA. These are just a few examples of contributions to the field of transportation engineering made by Dr. Teply and a testimony to his dedication to education and research are the many engineering students that entered the transportation engineering field.
Dr. John Morrall
President of the Canadian Highways Institute Ltd.
Professor Emeritus of Civil Engineering, University of Calgary
As a second year civil engineering student at the University of Alberta in the early 90s, I wasn’t sure which direction to take and specialize – transportation, water resources, structural. It was a class with Dr. Teply that helped me decide. The rest, as they say, is history. Like so many others in our field, Dr. Teply was my first inspiration and first teacher of Transportation Engineering. Sad to hear of his passing, but grateful to have known him and had him as a professor.
Russ Coulombe
Deputy Director – Transportation, CIMA+
I was one of the first group of masters students under Stan’s supervision, starting I believe, in his second year at U of A. I echo everything Gary and Mike said in their comments. Stan had a profound impact on my career, for which I am eternally grateful. He was an exceptional teacher and person.
Ken Zondervan
President, Zondervan Associates Engineering Ltd.
Stan had an extraordinary career and had a profound impact on our industry. Many students entered the profession as a result of Stan’s influence and guidance. He will be missed but never forgotten.
Doug Allingham
Chair, Board of Directors at Greater Toronto Airports Authority
Stan was an early inspiration to my career in transportation planning. Wonderful to read about all the careers and colleagues he has touched.
James Hnatiuk
Regional Director Transit – Western Canada, Hatch
I was fortunate to have met Dr. Teply when I was a grad student at the University of Calgary, during the joint transportation meetings that John Morrall mentioned, and a few years later at a TRB conference when he generously escorted some of us new graduates around Alexandria, Virginia on a break during the conference.
Ann Coffin
Senior Transportation Planning Engineer, British Columbia Ministry of Transportation
Dr. Teply was one of the highlights of my engineering program at the U of A, and like many others, instrumental in my career direction in transportation engineering. Saddened to hear of his passing, hope he was as blessed as those he had blessed.
Terry Gee
Principal Project Manager, Parsons Corporation
