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Transportation Engineers

It's a bright outlook for

This career will grow rapidly in the next few years.

Learn more about what they do.

Develop plans for surface transportation projects, according to established engineering standards and state or federal construction policy. Prepare designs, specifications, or estimates for transportation facilities. Plan modifications of existing streets, highways, or freeways to improve traffic flow.

Related: Civil Engineering Technologists & Technicians Civil Engineers Highway Maintenance Workers Traffic Technicians Transportation Planners

Industries: Professional, Science, & Technical Government Construction

Summary
Details

Investigate traffic problems and recommend methods to improve traffic flow or safety.
Confer with contractors, utility companies, or government agencies to discuss plans, specifications, or work schedules.
Prepare project budgets, schedules, or specifications for labor or materials.
Analyze environmental impact statements for transportation projects.
Investigate or test specific construction project materials to determine compliance to specifications or standards.
Participate in contract bidding, negotiation, or administration.
Develop plans to deconstruct damaged or obsolete roadways or other transportation structures in a manner that is environmentally sound or prepares the land for sustainable development.
Inspect completed transportation projects to ensure compliance with environmental regulations.
Prepare project budgets, schedules, or specifications for labor or materials.
Evaluate transportation systems or traffic control devices or lighting systems to determine need for modification or expansion.
Evaluate construction project materials for compliance with environmental standards.
Direct the surveying, staking, or laying-out of construction projects.
Design or engineer drainage, erosion, or sedimentation control systems for transportation projects.
Prepare final project layout drawings that include details such as stress calculations.
Estimate transportation project costs.
Inspect completed transportation projects to ensure safety or compliance with applicable standards or regulations.
Review development plans to determine potential traffic impact.
Supervise the maintenance or repair of transportation systems or system components.
Plan alteration or modification of existing transportation structures to improve safety or function.
Design transportation systems or structures with sustainable materials or products, such as porous pavement or bioretention structures.
Participate in contract bidding, negotiation, or administration.
Prepare project budgets, schedules, or specifications for labor or materials.
Evaluate traffic control devices or lighting systems to determine need for modification or expansion.
Prepare administrative, technical, or statistical reports on traffic-operation matters, such as accidents, safety measures, or pedestrian volume or practices.
Present data, maps, or other information at construction-related public hearings or meetings.
Model transportation scenarios to evaluate the impacts of activities such as new development or to identify possible solutions to transportation problems.
Develop or assist in the development of transportation-related computer software or computer processes.
Design or prepare plans for new transportation systems or parts of systems, such as airports, commuter trains, highways, streets, bridges, drainage structures, or roadway lighting.
Check construction plans, design calculations, or cost estimations to ensure completeness, accuracy, or conformity to engineering standards or practices.

Management of Personnel Resources
- Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
Quality Control Analysis
- Testing how well a product or service works.
Troubleshooting
- Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
Systems Evaluation
- Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
Management of Material Resources
- Managing equipment and materials.
Technology Design
- Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
Equipment Selection
- Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
Complex Problem Solving
- Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
Reading Comprehension
- Reading work-related information.
Mathematics
- Using math to solve problems.
Learning Strategies
- Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
Instructing
- Teaching people how to do something.
Writing
- Writing things for co-workers or customers.
Management of Financial Resources
- Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
Systems Analysis
- Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
Operations Analysis
- Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
Installation
- Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
Speaking
- Talking to others.
Active Learning
- Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
Active Listening
- Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
Critical Thinking
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
Social Perceptiveness
- Understanding people's reactions.
Coordination
- Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
Negotiation
- Bringing people together to solve differences.
Time Management
- Managing your time and the time of other people.
Service Orientation
- Looking for ways to help people.
Programming
- Writing computer programs.
Equipment Maintenance
- Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
Operation and Control
- Using equipment or systems.
Judgment and Decision Making
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
Science
- Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
Monitoring
- Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
Persuasion
- Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.

Originality
- Creating new and original ideas.
Written Comprehension
- Reading and understanding what is written.
Reaction Time
- Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
Rate Control
- Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
Speed of Limb Movement
- Quickly moving your arms and legs.
Night Vision
- Seeing at night or under low light.
Hearing Sensitivity
- Telling the difference between sounds.
Extent Flexibility
- Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Visual Color Discrimination
- Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
Auditory Attention
- Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
Gross Body Equilibrium
- Keeping your balance or staying upright.
Depth Perception
- Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
Inductive Reasoning
- Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
Problem Sensitivity
- Noticing when problems happen.
Number Facility
- Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
Arm-Hand Steadiness
- Keeping your arm or hand steady.
Wrist-Finger Speed
- Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
Gross Body Coordination
- Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
Peripheral Vision
- Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
Speech Recognition
- Recognizing spoken words.
Oral Comprehension
- Listening and understanding what people say.
Oral Expression
- Communicating by speaking.
Dynamic Strength
- Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
Speech Clarity
- Speaking clearly.
Trunk Strength
- Using your lower back and stomach.
Near Vision
- Seeing details up close.
Deductive Reasoning
- Using rules to solve problems.
Mathematical Reasoning
- Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
Fluency of Ideas
- Coming up with lots of ideas.
Perceptual Speed
- Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
Time Sharing
- Doing two or more things at the same time.
Control Precision
- Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
Visualization
- Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
Response Orientation
- Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
Selective Attention
- Paying attention to something without being distracted.
Memorization
- Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
Manual Dexterity
- Holding or moving items with your hands.
Dynamic Flexibility
- Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Sound Localization
- Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
Finger Dexterity
- Putting together small parts with your fingers.
Static Strength
- Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
Flexibility of Closure
- Seeing hidden patterns.
Stamina
- Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
Far Vision
- Seeing details that are far away.
Glare Sensitivity
- Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
Category Flexibility
- Grouping things in different ways.
Written Expression
- Communicating by writing.
Information Ordering
- Ordering or arranging things.
Speed of Closure
- Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
Spatial Orientation
- Knowing where things are around you.
Multilimb Coordination
- Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
Explosive Strength
- Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.

Therapy and Counseling
- Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
Customer and Personal Service
- Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Chemistry
- Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
Law and Government
- Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
Transportation
- Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
Geography
- Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
Fine Arts
- Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
Administrative
- Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
Education and Training
- Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
Design
- Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
Psychology
- Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
Foreign Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
Engineering and Technology
- Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
English Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
Mathematics
- Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Medicine and Dentistry
- Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
Biology
- Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
Building and Construction
- Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
Sociology and Anthropology
- Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
Production and Processing
- Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Public Safety and Security
- Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Communications and Media
- Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
History and Archeology
- Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
Economics and Accounting
- Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Personnel and Human Resources
- Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Mechanical
- Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
Administration and Management
- Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Food Production
- Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
Physics
- Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
Computers and Electronics
- Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Sales and Marketing
- Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
Philosophy and Theology
- Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
Telecommunications
- Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.

Education

Bachelor's degree

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

No on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

Washington Annual Salary

105090/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

50.52/hr

Currently Employed

15,090

Yearly Projected Openings

1230

Realistic: People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They do well at jobs that need:

Cautiousness
Integrity
Attention to Detail
Dependability
Intellectual Curiosity
Achievement Orientation

Desktop computers
Digital cameras
Laser fax machine
Laser printers
Notebook computers
Personal computers
Photocopiers
Special purpose telephones
Two way radios

Analytical or scientific software
Computer aided design CAD software
Data base user interface and query software
Electronic mail software
Geographic information system
Internet browser software
Materials requirements planning logistics and supply chain software
Object or component oriented development software
Office suite software
Presentation software
Project management software
Spreadsheet software
Word processing software

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