Director of Planning – Transportation & GIS

JOB SUMMARY:

The Director of Planning is responsible for overseeing service design and planning, federal reporting, and community coordination activities. This position works closely with internal leadership, the Title VI Coordinator, and the Genesee Transportation Council to ensure that cost effective public transit is planned to serve the community.

SUPERVISES:  Transportation Planners

SALARY: $90,000 – $100,000 annually (depending on experience)

BENEFITS INCLUDE:

• Staying Healthy: Medical, Dental, and Vision (Dental & Vision currently free), Flexible Spending Account (FSA)
• Feeling Secure: Disability Insurance, Pension Plan, NY State Deferred Compensation Plan, Life & Accidental Death & Dismemberment (AD&D) Insurance, Accident Insurance, Group Specified Disease Insurance and Hospital Insurance
• Work-Life Balance: Paid Time Off (PTO: 17 days upon hire; accrue additional time after 1 year), Employee Assistance Program, Paid Holidays, Verizon Wireless Discount, On-site Fitness Center open 24/7, Employee Wellness Program, Culture & Inclusion Council, BJ’s Wholesale Club Discount, and more!

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:

Supervision

• Directs, monitors, and appraises the performance of direct reports and provides the necessary project and task allocation and tracking coordination between activities.
• Identifies training needs, initiates development of subordinates through goal setting, and recommends effective personnel action.
• Supervises outside consultants, assigns work, and organizes and directs the timely completion of complex reports, other written materials, and oral reports for dissemination to Authority management, the Board of Commissioners, external agencies, and the general public.

Strategic Performance/Alignment

• Participates as a member of the Leadership Team in the development and implementation of the strategic plan.
• Continuously identifies service trends and develops policies and service design options that result in cost-effective service offerings.

• Directs the analysis and preparation of recommendations on immediate and long-term transit service trends and needs, transit regulatory policies and requirements, resource needs, environmental review, Title VI compliance, and financial requirements.
• Coordinates activities with internal departments, customers and community-based organizations regarding the impact of service and long-range service plans that affect the Authority’s Comprehensive Plan.
• Manages major planning studies which include coordinating and providing staff lead for interagency review of jurisdictional updates of transportation plans; developing tasks and coordinating long-range planning and facility siting studies; researching and evaluating new technologies in planning and service delivery; updating the Multi-Year Service Plan; and performing other related activities.
• Manages short and long-range service planning and grants projects.
• Manages special studies and surveys designed to achieve efficient and economic public transportation service that meet the needs of the community.
• Performs and manages transportation demand management planning activities, which include reviewing and commenting on proposed land use developments or road projects; promoting the incorporation of pro-transit policies and programs; reviewing and implementing bus stop locations; and performing other related activities.
• Develops, documents, and updates service planning processes, policies, and goals.
• Maintains detailed records of activities and writes periodic reports on Planning Department activity, as required by management and/or project specifications (i.e., UPWP grant reporting).

Customer Service

• Leads the planning of services to be delivered in the RGRTA service area as the chair of the Service Monitoring Committee.
• Develops and executes an annual service plan that delivers the planned services and achieves targeted budgets and service standards.

Finance

• Tracks and evaluates transit services, including determination of costs/benefits of proposed route modifications.
• Prepares and develops annual department budget; monitors and approves expenditures in accordance with Authority policies and principles of sound fiscal management.
• Prepares the Planning Department budget, administers approved budgets, and monitors expenditures.

ADDITIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Other duties as assigned.

EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE:

• Bachelor’s Degree in Urban Planning, Engineering, Public Administration, or a related field with strong transportation, urban studies, planning, or government experience; minimum of five years of work experience with demonstrated communication and organizational skills and two (2) years in a supervisory role. Master’s Degree preferred.
• An equivalent combination of related work experience, training, and/or education sufficient to successfully perform the essential duties of the job.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & ABILITIES:

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Ability to read and understand maps, construction plans, and geocodes.
• Ability to manage multiple projects and tasks simultaneously.
• Effective at defining problems, reviewing and collecting data, establishing facts, and drawing valid conclusions.
• Proficient at interpreting general business periodicals, professional journals, technical procedures, or governmental regulations.
• Skilled at writing reports and business correspondence.
• Strong understanding of applicable Federal, State, and Local laws, rules, and regulations, and local government roles and responsibilities related to community infrastructure, zoning, transit operations, and census requirements.
• Excellent presentation, facilitation, written, verbal, analytical, and communication skills with the ability to convey complex or technical information effectively to technical and non-technical project stakeholders and the general public.
• Awareness of principles and practices related to budgeting, transit planning, systems, schedules, and operations.
• Strong understanding of performance measures and quality of service concepts; Transportation Demand Management concepts; Transit customer service information requirements; marketing elements, policy development and implementation.
• Effective ability to research, analyze, report, and present, as well as to understand methods and techniques of data collection and statistical analysis.
• Well-developed management skills with regard to both principles and people, including the ability to lead others.
• Working knowledge of Trapeze FX (or similar) applications and GIS applications.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS & WORK ENVIRONMENT:

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.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit while using hands to finger, handle, or feel objects, tools, or controls. The employee frequently is required to talk, hear, see, and use a computer. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus. The employee is occasionally required to stand, walk, reach with hands and arms, and stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl.

The employee must regularly lift and/or move up to 10 pounds.

The noise level in the work environment is usually light.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Rochester Genesee Regional Transportation Authority (RGRTA) has a zero-tolerance drug and alcohol policy for all employees in accordance with state and federal law. All internal and external applicants will be required to undergo drug testing before employment and will be subject to further drug and/or alcohol testing throughout their employment in accordance with the Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) regulatory requirements.

RGRTA is committed to equal opportunity for all, without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, citizenship, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, veteran status, disability, genetic information, or any other protected characteristic. RGRTA will make reasonable accommodations for known physical or mental limitations of otherwise qualified employees and applicants with disabilities unless the accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the operation of our business.