Job Alert: Transportation Planner / Systems Analyst – TranSystems @ Boston, MA

July 10, 2014 at 5:00 pm

TranSystems, a national transportation engineering, design and planning firm, seeks a candidate to provide detailed technical support for intelligent transportation systems (ITS) and transportation planning projects.

TranSystems is seeking a Transportation Planner/Systems Analyst candidate to provide detailed technical support for intelligent transportation systems (ITS) and transportation planning projects. The successful applicant must share a mixed passion for transportation systems and the application of technology in transportation.  Candidates should have a basic understanding of public transportation technology concepts such as location tracking, mapping and geographic information systems (GIS), vehicle dispatching, vehicle/driver scheduling, wireless communications, and enterprise software.

Basic Qualifications:

  • A Bachelor’s degree in Transportation or Civil Engineering, Transportation Planning, or a related major and 1 year of experience in related transportation technology, planning, and/or data visualization OR Master’s degree in Transportation or Civil Engineering, Transportation Planning or related major with no relevant experience
  • Basic computer programming skills, particularly related to large dataset analysis and visualization.
  • Proficiency with MS Office (Word, Excel, Access, Project and Publisher)
  • Proficient data analysis and interpretation skills coupled with a familiarity with statistical software such as SAS, SPSS, R and ArcGIS.
  • Willingness to travel 10 to 20% of the time.  The position covers projects throughout the U.S.
  • Experience with demonstrable complex problem-solving is required.
  • Capability to manage projects/tasks as directed.
  • Ability to work as a member of a team or perform independent work
  • Excellent oral, written, presentation and interpersonal skills.
  • No visa sponsorship assistance
  • No relocation assistance

Preferred Qualifications:

  • Minimum 2+ years of experience related to transportation technology, planning, and/or data visualization
  • Proficiency with Adobe Creative Suite (InDesign, Illustrator, and Photoshop)
  • Marketing and proposal development experience is a plus
  • Fluency with one or more of the following will be considered advantageous: MATLAB, Ruby, PHP, Python/NumPy, HTML, Java, SQL and NoSQL databases
  • Experience in the public transportation industry

Primary responsibilities include the following:

  • Be capable of performing office and field technical work associated with various aspects of ITS and planning, including strategic planning, procurement and deployment of transportation technologies; development of technical designs; transportation technology research; evaluation of deployed technologies at agencies; and analysis and visualization of transportation data to develop decision support tools for public transportation agencies.
  • Have the ability to take direction from senior staff, and to lead and deliver assigned tasks independently.
  • Be able to work directly with external parties (e.g., clients, transit industry vendors) with minimal guidance from senior staff to complete assigned tasks, as necessary.
  • Communicate clearly and concisely, both orally and in writing. Proficient technical writing including preparing memos, reports and presentation materials, is required.
  • Be capable of analyzing/solving complex transportation planning or engineering problems.
  • Use software effectively and make timely and informed recommendations.

Click here to learn more and to apply

Job Alert: Senior Associate – Transportation Planner – Nelson\Nygaard Consulting Associates @ Boston, MA

March 4, 2014 at 6:09 pm

NelsonNygaard Consulting Associates (NN) seeks a highly organized, experienced, independent and motivated Senior Associate or Associate IV for its Boston office. This is an outstanding opportunity for the right person to become involved in building NN’s practice, which is focused on multi-modal transportation planning for livable communities. NN’s work emphasizes creative, innovative transit/transportation planning and community involvement, often within a wider set of goals such as economic development and reduced dependence on the private automobile.

Image courtesy:  YPTransportation.org

Image courtesy: YPTransportation.org

NelsonNygaard is a growing company. We have grown smartly over the past 25 years, in a way that builds on our mission and core values, and have succeeded as a result. Helping our clients achieve their larger goals, including building vibrant, more sustainable and equitable communities, is what underlies our approach to transportation planning. Cultivating a work environment that is best for employee development and well-being is what underlies our approach to doing business. As we continue to grow, we want to remain a firm with open doors and open communication, with flexibility and an emphasis on creativity; where employees at all levels are part of the firm, not just working for it. As a firm, and as individual professionals, we remain deeply committed to walkable, bikeable, accessible communities, and, above all, quality public transportation accessible to all.

Each of our offices is recognized as a meaningful local community member through its local project work and other firm and individual participation. As individuals, we advocate for more ecologically sustainable, economically vibrant, socially equitable, healthful, and universally accessible communities. Our staff reflect the full diversity of our clients, including gender, race, culture, age, language fluency, and other experiences, and we all use our unique perspectives to tailor our professional work to meet the needs of the communities we work in. We hire the smartest, most skilled people in the industry through the right combination of pay, benefits, autonomy, office environment, work quality, flexibility, advancement potential, and core values.

Demographic trends and public policy changes will shape our business in the coming years, creating challenges to overcome. At the same time that the growing federal deficit and declining transportation revenues have cut into project budgets, new markets and revenue streams are emerging that may allow us to grow in the face of downsizing. Several major trends will make our services more in demand than ever. Rise of the millenials, graying of the boomers, peak car use, growth of the global middle class, climate change and resilience, technology and the sharing economy, rebirth of the inner suburbs, changing transportation needs for women, public health, and active transportation are all trends that we stay on top of and plan for.

Responsibilities

The ideal candidate should have a broad range of transportation and urban planning experience.  At the very least a candidate should be able to demonstrate significant expertise in at least three of the following areas:

  • Citywide Transportation Planning and Analysis
  • Campus Transportation Planning
  • Parking Planning
  • Bicycle/Pedestrian Facility Planning
  • Transit Station Area Planning
  • Street Design Guidelines
  • Data Collection and Performance Assessments
  • Light Rail, Commuter Rail, and/or Streetcar Planning
  • Transport Policy, Funding and Governance
  • Paratransit and Demand-Responsive Services
  • Advanced Graphic Communication (InDesign, Photoshop)
  • Computer Traffic Modeling

Successful applicants will be expected to:

  • Function as a project manager for small studies and as a lead planner for complex components of large projects.
  • Demonstrate excellent written and verbal skills
  • Possess proven experience in managing projects within budget
  • Work successfully with clients, members of the public and your team members
  • Outline and prepare reports and successful proposals
  • Analyze a wide range of transportation data and complete (directly or manage the completion of) technical analysis, feasibility studies or other transportation reports.
  • Prepare and give effective presentations
  • Creatively solve multimodal transportation problems.
  • Participate in firm-wide strategic planning activities to ensure that we continue to build on our mission and core values.
  • Mentor and train junior staff to become as good, or even better, at their job as you.
  • Organize and supervise data collection activities in the office and the field
  • Take a lead role on business development proposals.

Qualifications and Requirements

The ideal candidate will have a broad range of transportation and urban planning experience. At minimum, the candidate should meet the following qualifications.

  • At least six years of increasingly responsible experience in transportation planning, traffic engineering, or one of the disciplines listed above
  • A bachelor’s or more advanced degree in urban or transportation planning, or a related planning field. Master’s degree is preferred.
  • Skills and enthusiasm for business development.
  • Excellent written, verbal, and other communication skills, including facilitating public workshops, and making compelling presentations.
  • The ability to manage complex projects on time and on budget.
  • The candidate must be able to demonstrate basic proficiency with Microsoft Excel, Word and Powerpoint
  • Additional experience with GIS, Graphic (InDesign, Illustrator, SketchUp), Modeling (Synchro, VISSIM, TransCAD) or database anlaysis will be considered favorably.

Though most of the work will come from projects from the Boston office, there will be numerous opportunities for the candidate to contribute to NN projects across the United States. Candidates must be willing to travel (on average 2 overnight stays per month plus numerous day trips) and must have a valid Driver’s License.  Preference will be given to candidates with AICP or P.E. certification.

Potential candidates may be asked to demonstrate their writing and oral presentation skills. Candidates should be available to start immediately. Above all, we are looking for someone who has a passion for sustainable transportation planning, and is interested in making communities better for our clients and their constituents.

Salary and Benefits

NelsonNygaard offers a dynamic and self-directed work environment that is fast-paced, congenial, and supportive. This will be your opportunity to work with one of the most dynamic and innovative groups of planners and engineers in the U.S., including highly talented junior and support staff. Our office culture is built upon diversity and creativity. Benefits of the position include:

  • Medical, dental, and vision
  • Health savings account
  • Dependent care flexible spending account
  • 401(k) retirement plan, including employer contribution
  • Personal time off
  • Incentive-based bonuses
  • Professional society dues
  • Training and conference reimbursement
  • In-house training programs
  • Technology reimbursement
  • Commuter benefits
  • Car share membership
  • Bike share membership
  • Fitness center discount
  • Mentoring program

The annual salary range equivalent for this position is industry competitive, depending on qualifications and years of experience.

NelsonNygaard Consulting Associates, Inc. is an equal employment opportunity affirmative action employer.

Prior to sending your materials, please combine your cover letter, resume, and work samples into a single PDF with the filename format “Firstname Lastname – Boston Senior Associate.pdf”. Send the materials to jobs@nelsonnygaard.com with the subject line “Boston Senior Associate”

No Phone Calls Please

Job Alert: Coordinator, Statewide Mobility Management Programs – Massachusetts Dept. of Transportation

November 6, 2012 at 4:19 pm

via YPT Boston

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Bad timing, bro – Fare Jumper Caught Red Handed By Boston MBTA General Manager

December 9, 2010 at 6:14 pm

(Source: Boston Globe)

Boston MBTA’s General Manager Richard Davey was headed to Ashmont on the T’s Red Line for the unveiling of banners created by youth artists from Dorchester when he spotted the scofflaw attempting to climb over the fare gates at the lesser-used Winter Street entrance to Park Street.

He walked up the evader and confronted him for jumping over the turnstiles.  Caught by surprise and enveloped in shame, the  scofflaw retreats back. This is where it gets better.

“He kind of fumbled around, and he did not have the CharlieCard (aka the fare card) and had just a couple of bucks on him, so I actually offered to pay for him,” Davey said. “He declined and said he would get his own ticket.”

Oh well, at least the young man had the pride to pay for his own ticket after getting caught red handed.  Good job, Richard Davey.  MBTA should be proud to have a vigilant man at the top running the show.

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Terror on the tracks – Scientists simulate terror attack on Boston subway

August 20, 2010 at 3:25 pm

The study aims to help researchers understand how toxic chemicals and lethal biological agents could spread through the nation’s oldest subway system in a terrorist attack airflow and also help in studying the characteristics for smoke or unintentional spills of chemicals or fuels.

Amplify’d from www.google.com

BOSTON — Scientists are releasing gases and fluorescent particles into Boston’s subway tunnels on Friday to study how toxic chemicals and lethal biological agents could spread through the nation’s oldest subway system in a terrorist attack.

It’s part of a weeklong study commissioned by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to figure out ways to quickly minimize the impact of an airborne assault on the nation’s 15 subway systems and protect the nation’s infrastructure. U.S. subway systems include 810 miles of track in tunnels and accounted for about 3.45 billion trips taken last year, according to the American Public Transportation Association.

The scientists are monitoring concentration of the gases — which are invisible to the naked eye and nontoxic — and particles as they move throughout the system and then up into the streets above, pushed by turbulence created by trains thundering through the tunnels. Researchers use electronic devices to take air samples at more than 20 Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority stations and in subway cars.

Test results will be used to craft ways to quickly detect an attack so authorities can shut down subways to limit the spread of contaminants.

Federal officials say similar tests were conducted in 2008 in the Washington, D.C., area, serving as an excellent contrast to the Boston study. The Massachusetts subway system, which opened its first tunnels in 1897, is poorly ventilated, while Washington’s is relatively modern and well-ventilated, DHS officials said.

Read more at www.google.com

 

Stimulus rules may stymie transportation projects; State recipients worry

March 26, 2009 at 6:10 pm

(Source: Boston Globe)

Mass. officials say public works that would have the biggest impact – and create the most jobs – may be left out

Governor Deval Patrick’s administration has determined that dozens of worthy projects are not eligible for federal stimulus money because the US government has dictated that only certain types of public improvements can be funded, even if they have limited economic potential.

That means the initial round of stimulus spending may generate fewer jobs than Massachusetts officials had expected.

When it approved the stimulus package, Congress restricted the use of about $800 million of transportation funds to projects that have been included on a list of public improvements states put together annually. It often takes years for a project to work its way onto that list.

In Massachusetts, many of those projects are simple jobs – paving roads or fixing sidewalks – and usually do not trigger another round of associated development that would employ a larger number of people. The congressional restriction prevents Patrick from using the money for some larger highway and transit upgrades that aren’t on the list but that would spur development of homes, office parks, and retail stores.

Click here to read the entire article.

Rail~Volution: Call for Proposals Entry Deadline: April 1, 2009

February 25, 2009 at 6:18 pm

(Source: Planetizen)

This announcement was posted by: Rail~Volution

Rail~Volution 2009: Boston October 30-November 1, 2009

Rail~Volution is a conference for passionate practitioners – people from all perspectives who believe in the role of land use and transit as equal partners in the quest for greater livability and greater communities. The success of the conference depends on the quality and diversity of presentations. Rail~Volution solicits your story-sharing expertise, experience, success and challenges.

THEME:  This country is being reshaped by the economic crisis, suburban foreclosures, volatile gas prices, and concern about the carbon footprint of development—creating enormous momentum for change. The new administration is committed to change, and Congress is deliberating the bill that sets transportation policy and funding for the next six years. Livable communities near transit are more economically and environmentally sustainable and we need more of them now. Let’s rise to the challenge. The window of opportunity is opening wide.

Help us enliven the discussion! Give us your ideas now!

http://www.railvolution.com/CallForProposals_2009.asp

For more information contact:
Mary Simon
Rail~Volution
1120 SW 5th Avenue Suite 800
Portland, Oregon 97204
USA
Phone: 503-823-6870
Email: mary.simon@pdxtrans.org
Web: www.railvolution.com

GOP gas tax protest draws dozens

February 25, 2009 at 6:01 pm

(Source: Boston Globe)

rizer_GOP-demo1_met.jpg
(George Rizer/Globe Staff)

A few dozen activists clutching posters and red gasoline cans attended a Republican rally this morning on the steps of the State House to protest the governor’s plan to raise the gas tax by 19 cents.

The protesters urged drivers on Beacon Hill to honk to object to Governor Deval Patrick’s transportation bill, which would increase the gas tax instead of tolls on the Massachusetts Turnpike.

“Everybody who drives to work was honking their horn,” said Barney Keller, spokesman for the state Republican Party. “It went excellent. We had people braving the cold.”

Click here to read the entire article.

Boston Globe Op-Ed: The transformation of transportation

February 24, 2009 at 12:11 am

(Source: Bostonglobe.com)

In the half-month since the Senate nearly slashed mass transit from the stimulus bill, yet more locales broke ridership records from coast to coast. The New York City subway system moved 1.62 billion people last year, the most since 1950. Combined with buses, the city moved 2.37 billion people, the most since 1965. The Metro-North rail that services the suburbs outside New York carried a record 84 million passengers.

In the Midwest, the Madison, Wis., bus system recorded 13.4 million rides last year, the highest since 1979. Chicago’s suburban bus system carried 40 million riders last year, the highest since 1991. Minneapolis/St. Paul’s suburban bus system carried a record 2.6 million riders.

In the Pacific Northwest, the Amtrak Cascades line from Portland to Seattle set a new record with a 14.4 percent increase. In the South, ridership for the Piedmonttrain between Charlotte and Raleigh was up 30.8 percent last year.

Click here to read the full article.