Her primary research interest is in environmentally and socially-beneficial technology applications for "smart" carsharing. She designed and tested the CarLink I and II pilot programs, using advanced technologies to support commuter carsharing services from 1997 to 2002. Carsharing has been proven to reduce auto ownership, energy use, and emissions and increase transit ridership, cycling and walking. An internationally recognized leader in innovative mobility research, Dr. Shaheen also is working on smart parking management for transit and trucks, fuel cell vehicles and infrastructure, smart growth/development, AB 32 (California’s Global Warming Solutions Act), low-speed electric modes linked to transit and older mobility. 

Dr. Shaheen has a Ph.D. in ecology, focusing on technology management and the environmental aspects of transportation, from UC Davis; an M.S. in public policy analysis from the University of Rochester; and a B.A. in political science and English (writing concentration) from Nazareth College. She also has graduate certificates from the University of Paris, Sorbonne and the University of Oxford (sponsored by an Eisenhower scholarship from the English Speaking Union). Dr. Shaheen completed her post-doctoral studies on advanced public transportation systems at UC Berkeley.