Transportation Planner

Position Summary

The position of Transportation Planner is responsible for delivering technical assistance to municipal and regional entities on issues related to transportation including transit planning, infrastructure assessment, and transportation project development. The Transportation Planner will provide transportation mapping services for the EMDC region. The Transportation Planner will join a department that employs a team approach, focusing on communication, integration with other EMDC programs, and outcomes.

Essential Functions

• Provide transportation technical planning and related assistance to municipal officials.
• Work with local planning teams to help with drafting, review, and revision of local transportation and development plans that adhere to State and federal regulations, and other related materials.
• Support the EMDC Planning team to develop transportation chapter of community-specific comprehensive plans.
• Work with EMDC leadership to coordinate federal and State grants focused on transportation planning (i.e., DOT/FTA transportation planning project for Penobscot and Piscataquis counties, State transportation pilot).
• Perform commuter travel demand models as needed at the community level. Translate the findings to a transit and travel demand modeling evaluation using GIS and narrative summaries.
• Organize and facilitate meetings to engage local and regional stakeholders in transportation planning processes.
• Correctly and efficiently utilize and analyze demographic, economic, environmental, tabular and mapped sources of information for presentation in reports and to audiences in support of transportation planning initiatives.
• Attend meetings of local, regional, and state groups and committees, planning seminars, and conferences. This includes evening meetings.
• Support efforts on Eastern Maine’s Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) that reinforce EMDC’s designation as an Economic Development District (EDD).
• Support efforts and activities of EMDC’s Regional Planning Commission.
• Support efforts to develop transportation-based grants to secure new project funding.
• Communicate and coordinate plans and projects with other EMDC staff, local and regional groups, and governmental agencies.
• Prepare and update reports, plans, ordinances, and other transportation planning-related documents as directed. Assist with contract management and grants development as needed.

Job Requirements

• Working knowledge of the principles, practices, and applications of community and regional planning, transportation planning, , and resiliency planning.
• Ability to communicate, establish, and maintain effective working relationships with local, state, and federal officials, and colleagues in other public and private agencies and institutions.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills including the ability to present technical information and planning concepts clearly and effectively to a range of audiences.
• Up-to-date working knowledge of federal and state legislation, programs, regulations, and procedures related to transportation planning.
• Working knowledge of GIS technology preferred.
• Ability to organize and facilitate group and committee discussions leading to clear and identifiable outcomes.
• Ability to work with limited supervision, to organize and execute work assignments in a thorough and timely manner, to work under frequent time pressures and be able to keep several projects in progress at the same time.
• Willingness to travel, and to attend frequent night meetings, using personal vehicle for business use (reimbursable).

Education/Experience

A minimum of a four-year college degree in transportation planning or related field is required. Experience in transportation planning; knowledge of the concepts, theories, principles, and practices of transportation planning and economic development at the regional and local level. Proficiency in Microsoft Office.

Working Conditions

General business hours are 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, though exempt positions will typically require work to be performed outside general business hours. Work is generally performed in an indoor, professional office environment.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit and talk or listen, and regularly required to use a keyboard for typing. The employee is often required to stand and walk. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 20 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision and ability to adjust focus. The employee must travel to different locations and must be able to provide own transportation.

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Disclaimer: Nothing in this job description restricts management’s right to assign or reassign duties and responsibilities to this job at any time.