Virginia Tech School of Public and International Affairs

Summary:

The Department of Transportation Planning of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) seeks a Regional Airport System Planner (Depending on Qualifications) to lead and perform professional-level planning activities that support primarily the Continuous Airport System Planning (CASP) program as well as other elements of the Planning Data and Research Program.

Job ID/Number: DTP-2022-21

Posted Date: 10/12/2022

Job Location: Washington, DC

Position Type: Full-time

Division: Department of Transportation Planning

Description: To Apply, Click HERE

The CASP Program provides a systematic framework for the planning, development, and operation of airport facilities and the transportation facilities that serve the airports in the Washington-Baltimore region. The successful candidate will play a key role supporting program management activities of the CASP program, supporting the planning and operations of the biennial Baltimore-Washington Regional Air Passenger Survey, analyzing data for transportation planning studies, and writing and presenting technical and policy-oriented reports to the Transportation Planning Board (TPB) and COG committees and subcommittees.

Primary Responsibilities

• Support program management activities of the CASP program, including developing annual grant applications, preparing project programming documents, tracking open grants, identifying future project opportunities, and staffing the Aviation Technical Subcommittee.
• Conduct project management of CASP planning studies, including developing project scopes, schedules, and milestones, and monitoring progress toward completion.
• Prepare and present CASP planning studies, including the results of the Washington-Baltimore Regional Air Passenger Survey, Regional Air System Plan updates, and other specialized ground access studies undertaken as part of the CASP program.
• Prepare agendas, minutes, and other materials for the Aviation Technical Subcommittee, as well as other committee and subcommittee meetings, when assigned.
• Analyze demographic, economic, land use, transportation and spatially-referenced data for use in airport ground access and transportation planning studies.
• Participate in developing specialized analytic methods and forecasting techniques for transportation and land use studies and plan evaluations.
• Write and prepare memoranda, technical and policy-oriented information reports.
• Make oral and graphic presentations of data, issues, findings and recommendations to TPB and COG committees and subcommittees, including the Aviation Technical Subcommittee.
• Participate in the planning, operations, and analysis of transportation surveys.
• Coordinate and work with federal, state, local and regional transportation and aviation agencies to obtain data, reports, and documentation required to support the development of ground access planning studies and other CASP information products.
• Respond to requests for information, data and technical reports from federal, state, local and regional transportation agencies, consultants and citizens.

WORK LOCATION

The candidate will be required to report to work at the COG offices in Washington, D.C. This is a not a fully remote work position. COG is currently conducting a pilot telework program that allows staff to telework up to three days to work; it is subject to change.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES

No direct staff supervisory responsibilities but may be involved in recruitment, supervising interns, and/or oversight of consultants during air passenger survey operations and other data collection activities. Such responsibilities may include interviewing, hiring, and training interns; planning, assigning, and directing work; appraising performance; rewarding and disciplining; addressing complaints and resolving problems.

REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES

The ideal candidate will possess excellent communication skills and demonstrated skill in critical thinking, judgment, data analysis, member services, and applied regional transportation planning. This candidate will also have a strong academic background in Transportation Planning, Urban Planning, Public Policy, Political Science, Economics, Statistics or a related field. The candidate will have experience with computer software packages used for database development, statistical analysis, and reporting; knowledge of the use of survey and other data in regional transportation planning activities as well as airport systems and ground access planning, and experience with GIS (ArcGIS) and visualization software.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

To be considered for the Transportation Planner II position, candidates must possess a bachelor’s degree in Transportation Planning, Urban Planning, Public Policy, Political Science, Economics, Statistics or a related field, and up to three (3) years of directly applicable work experience.

To be considered for the Transportation Planner III position, candidates must possess a master’s degree in Transportation Planning, Urban Planning, Public Policy, Political Science, Economics, Statistics or a related field, and more than three (3) years of directly applicable work experience.

Any equivalent combination of experience and training which provides the required knowledge, analytical and writing skills and abilities will be considered.

COMPUTER KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS

Experience with Microsoft Office programs (Word, Excel, PowerPoint), familiarity with ArcGIS, data management, and a working knowledge of the concepts of developing impactful visualizations to convey technical information to different groups of stakeholders.

COMMUNICATION SKILLS

Ability to read, analyze, and interpret common planning, scientific and technical journals, financial reports, and legal and policy documents. Ability to respond to common inquiries or complaints from members, regulatory agencies, community leaders and citizens. Ability to effectively present information to top management, public groups, and/or boards of directors. Ability to work collaboratively with Board and committee members to develop meeting agendas and provide staffing support for committee meetings.

MATHEMATICAL SKILLS

Ability to add, subtract, multiply, and divide in all units of measure, using whole numbers, common fractions, and decimals. Ability to compute percentages, rates, and ratios and to draw and interpret numeric charts and graphs.

REASONING ABILITY

Ability to define problems, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions. Ability to interpret an extensive variety of instructions furnished in written, oral, diagram, or schedule form and deal with a variety of abstract and concrete variables in situations where only limited standardization may exist.

TO APPLY

Please send a cover letter, resume and salary requirement highlighting the skills and relevant experience you would bring to this position. Please combine your cover letter and resume into a single file for upload.

The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments is committed to compliance with federal and state laws requiring that MWCOG only hires workers who are lawfully entitled to work in the United States (U.S. citizens or nationals and non-citizens with valid work authorization) without discrimination. MWCOG does not sponsor Visas of any type. All persons employed by Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments are required to comply with the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 by presenting documents to verify identity and authorization to work in the United States.

Acceptable forms of identification are listed by the Department of Homeland Security / U. S. Citizenship and Immigration Services on Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification.

Further information can be found on MWCOG’s Human Resources webpage (https://www.mwcog.org/about-us/human-resources/).

MWCOG is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, age, national origin, disability, sexual orientation or any other class protected by state or federal laws in admission or access to our programs, services, activities, hiring, and employment practices.

Depending on Qualifications the Salary for this position is:

Transportation Planner II $64,487-$93,701

Transportation Planner III $71,581 - $100,000

MWCOG is an EEOC Employer