Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Urban Transport Engineer

🎯 Role Definition

An Urban Transport Engineer designs, evaluates and implements safe, efficient, and sustainable transport systems within cities and metropolitan regions. This role combines transport planning, traffic engineering, modelling and stakeholder engagement to deliver multimodal solutions — including public transit, cycling and pedestrian networks, freight logistics and traffic signal systems — that meet policy goals for accessibility, congestion reduction and emissions reduction. The Urban Transport Engineer will lead technical studies, produce design deliverables, manage consultants and contractors, and translate strategic objectives into deliverable engineering interventions.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Graduate/Junior Transport Engineer or Assistant Transport Planner (0–2 years)
Civil Engineer with road/highway design experience transitioning to urban mobility
Transport Modeller or GIS Analyst moving into project-level planning

Advancement To:

Senior Urban Transport Engineer / Principal Transport Engineer
Transport Planning Team Lead / Project Manager
Head of Transport or Director of Urban Mobility

Lateral Moves:

Transport Policy Advisor (local or national government)
Sustainable Transport Consultant
Traffic Operations Specialist or Road Safety Auditor

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Lead and deliver multidisciplinary transport planning and engineering studies, including travel demand forecasting, traffic impact assessments, corridor studies and multimodal network design, ensuring technical quality and conformance with client objectives and local standards.
Develop and run transport models (macroscopic and microscopic) using software such as PTV Visum, Vissim, Aimsun, TransCAD or SATURN to evaluate highway, arterial, and public transport interventions and produce evidence-based recommendations.
Prepare signal timing and traffic signal optimisation schemes, including SCOOT/UTC integration where applicable, to improve intersection performance and reduce delays and emissions.
Design and detail active travel infrastructure (pedestrian improvements, cycle lanes, protected bike tracks, intersections and crossings) using best practice design guides and accessibility standards to increase safety and mode share for walking and cycling.
Conduct safety audits and road safety reviews (Stage 1–3) and recommend low-cost and capital improvements to reduce collisions and severity, supported by collision data analysis and engineering countermeasures.
Undertake public transport planning tasks including route optimization, service planning, timetable evaluation, bus priority measures, bus stop and shelter design, and integration with rail and light rail systems.
Perform traffic impact assessments for land use developments, including trip generation, distribution, modal split analysis, driveway and access design, parking demand analysis, and mitigation recommendations for planning approvals.
Collect, clean and analyze transport and traffic datasets (counts, origin-destination surveys, ticketing and smartcard data, GPS traces, Bluetooth/Wi-Fi data, and pedestrian flows) to quantify demand patterns and inform modelling inputs.
Produce clear technical reports, drawings, specifications and tender documents that articulate scope, design rationale, cost estimates and implementation sequencing for municipal or developer-funded projects.
Provide engineering support during detailed design, construction and commissioning phases, including review of contractor/subcontractor deliverables, site inspections, and resolution of technical queries.
Lead stakeholder engagement and public consultation processes with residents, businesses, transit operators and regulatory agencies to secure buy-in and refine project designs based on local feedback and equity considerations.
Coordinate with utility providers, landowners and statutory authorities to manage encumbrances, right-of-way issues and obtain necessary permits and approvals for transport infrastructure works.
Prepare transport-related inputs for environmental assessments, social impact studies and funding applications, ensuring compliance with sustainability objectives and mitigation measures.
Develop and apply multimodal performance indicators (travel time, reliability, person throughput, mode share, GHG emissions) to evaluate project outcomes and support monitoring and reporting frameworks.
Provide technical mentorship and supervision to junior engineers, modellers and technicians; review work products and build team capability in modelling, GIS and design tools.
Apply cost-benefit analysis and economic appraisal methodologies to quantify the value-for-money of transport schemes and prioritise investments within constrained budgets.
Integrate emerging technologies into transport solutions, including intelligent transport systems (ITS), mobility-as-a-service (MaaS) integration, electric bus infrastructure planning, micro-mobility and dynamic demand management strategies.
Prepare grant proposals, funding applications and business cases for capital projects, including preparation of budget estimates, program schedules, risk registers and benefits realisation plans.
Ensure design and operational compliance with local design manuals, national highway codes, accessibility legislation (including universal design principles) and climate resilience best practice.
Model freight and goods movement impacts and design urban freight solutions (loading zones, consolidation centers, off-peak deliveries) to minimise conflicts with passenger movements and support local economic activity.
Collaborate with urban designers, land-use planners and transport economists to align transport interventions with broader land use, housing and commercial development objectives and active-travel promotion.

Secondary Functions

Support ad-hoc transport data requests and exploratory analysis to inform council reports, planning decisions and rapid-response enquiries.
Contribute to the organisation’s transport strategy, modal shift targets and decarbonisation roadmap by providing technical inputs and scenario testing.
Collaborate with planning, public works and sustainability teams to translate policy objectives into engineering requirements and measurable project deliverables.
Participate in project planning activities and agile-style delivery cycles, including sprint planning, stand-ups and design reviews where project management methods are applied.
Maintain and enhance transport modelling and GIS datasets, scripts and libraries (Python, R, SQL) to improve reproducibility and efficiency across projects.
Review and incorporate academic research and best-practice case studies into local project designs to support innovation in mobility solutions.
Support procurement activities by preparing technical specifications, evaluating tender submissions and advising on contractor selection for transport projects.
Contribute to continuous improvement of departmental processes, standards and templates to accelerate delivery and ensure consistency in quality control.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Transport modelling and simulation: expertise in PTV Visum, Vissim, Aimsun, TransCAD, SATURN or similar transport modelling platforms.
Traffic engineering design: intersection geometry, roundabout design, lane allocation, signal timing and phasing using industry-standard design guides.
GIS and spatial analysis: ArcGIS Pro / QGIS proficiency for spatial data processing, network analysis, map production and scenario visualisation.
Data analysis and scripting: strong capability with Python (pandas, geopandas), R, SQL and Excel (including advanced functions and pivot tables) for data cleaning, analysis and automation.
Public transport planning: service planning, timetable analysis, bus priority and rail integration, and passenger flow modelling.
Road safety and audit techniques: practical experience with collision data analysis, Safer Systems approach and formal road safety audit procedures.
Design software: AutoCAD Civil 3D, MicroStation or equivalent for producing plan and profile drawings and construction documentation.
Active travel design standards: demonstrated knowledge of cycling and pedestrian facility design, accessibility standards and universal design principles.
Economic appraisal: cost-benefit analysis, multi-criteria analysis and lifecycle cost estimation for transport projects and business cases.
Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS): experience specifying and integrating ITS components like SCATS/SCOOT, traffic sensors and signal controllers.
Environmental and social assessment: ability to prepare transport inputs for EIA, SEA and social impact assessments.
Project management: scheduling, risk management, budget tracking and client reporting for multi-stakeholder transport projects.
Mobile data and telematics: experience processing GPS, Bluetooth/Wi-Fi, or mobile-device datasets to derive speed, origin-destination and flow patterns.
Regulatory and standards knowledge: familiarity with local highway codes, land-use planning frameworks and procurement regulations.

Soft Skills

Stakeholder engagement and communications: excellent written and verbal skills to brief elected officials, community groups and technical stakeholders.
Strategic thinking: ability to translate policy goals into pragmatic engineering interventions and measurable outcomes.
Problem solving and critical thinking: methodical approach to identify root causes and design effective, evidence-based solutions.
Collaboration and teamwork: experience working in multidisciplinary teams with planners, designers, economists and contractors.
Adaptability and resilience: ability to manage shifting priorities, complex approvals and fast-moving project constraints.
Mentoring and leadership: capacity to coach junior staff and lead technical workstreams towards deadlines.
Negotiation and conflict resolution: skill in reconciling competing stakeholder demands while protecting project objectives.
Attention to detail: rigor in checking technical calculations, modelling assumptions and drawing accuracy.
Client focus: strong commercial awareness and ability to tailor technical advice to client needs and budgets.
Presentation and visualization: ability to create compelling visual outputs, maps, dashboards and public-facing materials.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering, Transport/Traffic Engineering, Urban Planning, Transportation Engineering, or a closely related discipline.

Preferred Education:

Master’s degree in Transport Planning, Transport Engineering, Urban Mobility, or related field (e.g., MSc Transport, MUP with transport specialization).

Relevant Fields of Study:

Civil / Transport Engineering
Urban Planning and Design
Transport Economics and Policy
GIS and Spatial Science
Environmental Engineering with transport focus
Data Science for Transport

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

3 to 8 years of professional experience in transport planning, traffic engineering, modelling or related roles.

Preferred:

5+ years demonstrating project leadership, complex modelling work, or client-facing delivery in municipal government, transport consultancies or major infrastructure programs. Experience with local or national design standards and procurement processes is highly desirable.