1. Purpose and Scope
The Journal of Innovative Transportation (JIT), founded in 2020 and published by Süleyman Demirel University, is a non-profit, open-access academic journal committed to the dissemination of high-quality scientific knowledge in the field of transportation and related disciplines. JIT follows the principles and guidance of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the Higher Education Institutions Scientific Research and Publication Ethics Directive (YÖK, Türkiye), and, where applicable, the recommendations of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE).
2. Publisher’s Responsibilities
The Publisher is responsible for supporting editorial independence and protecting the integrity of the scholarly record. In this context, the Publisher ensures that:
- all manuscripts are processed in accordance with ethical publishing standards;
- editorial decisions are made independently and without interference from the publisher or any third party;
- the journal operates under an open-access model and does not charge submission or publication fees, unless otherwise announced on the journal website;
- suspected misconduct, plagiarism, unethical research practices, or manipulation of the publication process are handled in accordance with COPE flowcharts and relevant legal and institutional regulations;
- corrections, expressions of concern, withdrawals, and retractions are published when necessary to maintain the integrity of the scholarly record.
3. Editorial Responsibilities
The Editor-in-Chief and editorial team are responsible for managing the evaluation and publication processes fairly, consistently, and transparently. Editors shall:
- evaluate manuscripts solely on the basis of academic merit, originality, clarity, methodological soundness, and relevance to the journal’s scope;
- ensure that all submissions are treated without discrimination on the basis of nationality, gender, institutional affiliation, religion, political opinion, or other personal characteristics;
- protect the confidentiality of manuscripts and not disclose information about a submission to anyone other than those directly involved in the editorial and review process;
- appoint appropriate reviewers with relevant expertise;
- manage conflicts of interest in a transparent and appropriate manner;
- take reasonable steps to identify and prevent publication misconduct;
- investigate complaints, appeals, and allegations of ethical violations in accordance with COPE guidance;
- issue corrections, retractions, or other editorial notices where necessary.
The final decision regarding acceptance, revision, or rejection of a manuscript rests with the Editor-in-Chief.
4. Peer Review Policy and Reviewers’ Responsibilities
JIT uses a single-blind peer review process. Each manuscript that passes the initial editorial screening is evaluated by at least two independent reviewers with relevant expertise.
Reviewers are expected to:
- accept review invitations only for manuscripts within their field of competence;
- conduct evaluations objectively, fairly, constructively, and within the requested timeframe;
- maintain strict confidentiality regarding the manuscript and all associated materials;
- refrain from using any unpublished information obtained during peer review for personal advantage;
- declare any conflict of interest and decline the review where such conflict may affect impartiality;
- inform the editor of any suspected plagiarism, duplicate publication, data fabrication, unethical research practices, citation manipulation, or other misconduct;
- provide feedback that is evidence-based, academically respectful, and aimed at improving the manuscript.
5. Authors’ Responsibilities
Authors submitting manuscripts to JIT must ensure that:
- the submitted work is original;
- the manuscript has not been previously published in whole or in substantial part and is not under consideration elsewhere;
- all data presented are accurate, honestly obtained, and not fabricated, falsified, or inappropriately manipulated;
- all sources used in the study are properly cited;
- all listed authors have made a substantial academic contribution to the work and approve the final version of the manuscript;
- no individual who does not meet authorship criteria is listed as an author;
- all conflicts of interest, financial support, and funding sources are clearly disclosed;
- all relevant legal, institutional, and ethical requirements have been fulfilled;
- appropriate permissions have been obtained for copyrighted material, third-party content, figures, tables, instruments, or datasets where required;
- the manuscript complies with the journal’s author guidelines.
Authors are fully responsible for the scientific, ethical, and linguistic quality of their submissions.
6. Authorship and Contributorship
Authorship must be limited to individuals who have made significant scholarly contributions to the conception, design, execution, analysis, or interpretation of the study and who approve the submitted version.
All authors must agree to be accountable for the content of the work. Individuals who contributed to the work but do not meet the criteria for authorship should be acknowledged appropriately.
Any request to add, remove, or reorder authors after submission must be justified in writing and approved by the editorial office. The journal may request signed confirmation from all authors before such changes are accepted.
7. Human Participants, Ethics Committee Approval, and Informed Consent
For all studies involving human participants, including but not limited to surveys, questionnaires, interviews, focus groups, observations, experiments, and research involving human data, authors must comply with applicable ethical and legal requirements.
7.1 Mandatory Ethics Documentation
For such studies, authors must provide one of the following:
- ethics committee / institutional review board (IRB) approval, or
- an official decision from the relevant institutional ethics body stating that ethics approval was waived, exempted, or not required.
This requirement applies to all human-participant research submitted to JIT, including studies involving adult professionals, non-clinical participants, anonymous responses, or non-sensitive data.
7.2 Required Information in the Manuscript
The manuscript must clearly state:
- the name of the ethics committee or institutional ethics body;
- the decision date;
- the approval / exemption / waiver reference number.
A general author statement indicating that “ethical approval was not required” is not sufficient unless it is supported by an official institutional ethics decision.
7.3 Informed Consent
Authors must confirm that informed consent was obtained from participants where required. If written consent was not required, the authors must explain the applicable procedure in line with institutional and legal standards.
7.4 Privacy and Confidentiality
Authors must ensure the protection of participant privacy, confidentiality, and anonymity. Personally identifiable information must not be published unless explicit written permission has been obtained and publication is ethically and legally justified.
7.5 Editorial Right to Request Documentation
The journal reserves the right to request copies of ethics approval letters, exemption decisions, consent documentation, or related institutional records at any stage of the editorial or post-publication process. Failure to provide such documentation may result in rejection, withdrawal, correction, or retraction.
8. Research Integrity and Misconduct
JIT does not tolerate any form of research or publication misconduct. This includes, but is not limited to:
- plagiarism;
- self-plagiarism or redundant publication;
- data fabrication;
- data falsification;
- inappropriate image manipulation;
- citation manipulation;
- undisclosed conflicts of interest;
- guest, gift, or ghost authorship;
- unethical research involving humans or animals;
- submission of false or misleading ethics statements;
- manipulation of the peer review process.
Allegations of misconduct will be investigated in accordance with COPE guidance and relevant institutional or legal frameworks. Where necessary, the journal may contact the authors’ institution(s), funding bodies, or other relevant authorities.
9. Plagiarism Policy
All manuscripts submitted to JIT are screened using iThenticate or equivalent plagiarism-detection software.
Similarity reports are evaluated qualitatively, not only numerically. A high similarity score does not automatically indicate misconduct, and a low score does not automatically establish originality. However, manuscripts containing extensive unattributed overlap, duplicate publication, or other forms of plagiarism may be rejected without review.
Where serious or repeated plagiarism is identified, the journal may reject the submission and notify the relevant institution(s) in line with COPE guidance and applicable regulations.
10. Conflict of Interest and Funding Disclosure
Authors, reviewers, and editors must disclose any actual or potential conflict of interest that could influence the evaluation, interpretation, or publication of a manuscript.
Authors must declare:
- financial support and grant information;
- institutional or personal relationships relevant to the study;
- any commercial, legal, or professional interests that could be perceived as affecting objectivity.
Reviewers and editors must recuse themselves from handling manuscripts where a conflict of interest may compromise impartiality.
11. Data Availability and Transparency
JIT supports transparency and reproducibility in research. Authors are encouraged, and may be required when appropriate, to provide a data availability statement indicating whether the data supporting the findings are publicly available, available upon reasonable request, restricted for ethical or legal reasons, or not applicable.
Where possible, authors are encouraged to deposit data in institutional or public repositories. If data cannot be shared, the reason must be clearly stated.
Editors may request underlying data, analysis files, or supplementary materials during review or after publication if concerns arise regarding the reliability or integrity of the study.
12. Complaints and Appeals
JIT provides a fair and transparent mechanism for handling complaints and appeals relating to editorial decisions, peer review, publication ethics, or journal procedures.
- Appeals against editorial decisions must be submitted in writing to the editorial office within the period specified by the journal.
- Complaints and appeals are evaluated by the editorial team, and where necessary, by the Editor-in-Chief or Editorial Board.
- Cases involving ethical concerns are handled in accordance with COPE flowcharts and relevant institutional regulations.
- The journal reserves the right to seek additional expert or institutional input where necessary.
The decision reached after formal evaluation of an appeal shall be considered final.
13. Publication Ethics Oversight
All ethical matters arising before, during, or after publication are managed in accordance with COPE guidance, ICMJE recommendations, and the Higher Education Institutions Scientific Research and Publication Ethics Directive (YÖK, Türkiye).
The journal reserves the right to request documentation, suspend editorial processing, reject manuscripts, or take post-publication action whenever necessary to uphold academic integrity.
14. Useful References