TPTransportation Planner
TP
Career

Transportation Planner

By the numbers
Typical pay
$101,110 / yr
Education to start
Bachelor's degree
Future demand
-1.7% by 2034
People in this job
37K
Figures shown for ·closest of 2 O*NET occupations
The work
A day, hour by hour
08:15
Data dive

Pull overnight traffic counts and crash reports; flag anything unusual.

09:00
Model run

Feed updated commute data into the traffic model; watch where the new transit line chokes.

10:30
Project sync

Align with engineers and city officials on the corridor redesign — who's blocked, what's next.

11:15
Field check

Walk the proposed bike lane route; spot what the model missed on the ground.

13:00
Feasibility write-up

Turn cost-benefit numbers into a clear recommendation — ideal plan vs. fundable plan.

14:30
GIS mapping

Build updated pedestrian-flow maps for the council presentation deck.

15:45
Report draft

Translate dense intersection data into plain language a city council member can act on.

17:00
Public meeting

Present the bus-route proposal; decide which pushback signals a real flaw vs. fear of change.

Things you do
  • Map out how people and traffic move through a city or region.
  • Run computer models to predict how a new road or transit line performs.
  • Design bike lanes, bus routes, and pedestrian paths for real neighborhoods.
  • Present plans to city councils and community members at public meetings.
  • Study whether a proposed project is worth the cost and disruption.
Decisions you’ll make
  • Should I prioritize moving cars faster, or make this street safer for pedestrians?
  • Is the community pushback a real problem with my plan, or just fear of change?
  • Does my model's data reflect how people actually travel, or just how they used to?
  • Should I recommend the ideal solution, or the one that can actually get funded and built?
  • Is this intersection dangerous enough to flag now, or can it wait for the next study cycle?
Education Pathways · how you get there
100 in 100 went the college route · 0 in 100 found another way in None, typically
Education mapped from O*NET:
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