Jobs

We’re Hiring!

Our firm has two openings for transit planning professionals in the US!

  • Transit GIS Analyst / Planner in Arlington, VA or Portland, OR.  Read about it and apply here.  This position closes July 16, 2023.
  • Senior Associate / Principal.  This one will be open until filled.  We are looking for someone who wants to join us at a senior level who would expand the range of our practice.  Read about it and apply here.

Read more about our firm here, and please spread the word!

Gig: Graphics for My Updated Book

I am looking for a freelancer who is good at drawing simple explanatory diagrams about public transit concepts.  I need these diagrams for two uses: in our firm’s reports and also in the new edition of my book Human Transit.  This would be work for hire and our firm would retain the copyright on the images, though of course you could use your work as samples.  You would get illustrator credit in the book.

The images need to be greyscale, not in color, and suitable for print as well as web use.  I anticipate needing about 20 images, with the work ideally done mostly in February and early March 2023.

Location?  I would prefer that you be in North America, South America, Europe or Africa for reasons of time zones.  It will be harder for me to collaborate with someone in Asia or Australia/NZ.  If you are in the US, UK, or Eurozone it will be easy for us to pay you. Wherever you are, we will pay you in one of those three currencies and paying you needs to not involve a lot of hassle for us.

We already have a library of images but I think some of them could be clearer and/or more attractive, though clarity must never be sacrificed to attractiveness.  Images must always contain their own explanations, because a report or book must make sense to people who only scan the section titles and look at the pictures.

Here is a graphic that I feel pretty good about, explaining the concept of access:

 

This one, on the ridership-coverage tradeoff, also works well for us, although the blue is too faint.

(For more on this topic see here.)

Could these be sexier, more like “what an architect would draw”?  Sure, I’d love to see examples of that, but remember, the book will be black-and-white, although I may later ask for color work for other reports of ours.

To apply.  Hit the email button (it’s on the black bar above, and looks like an envelope.)  Please put “Graphics job” in the subject line.  Give me:

  • a resume/CV
  • some samples of work you’ve done that’s similar to what I’m describing.
  • An hourly rate.  In addition, please tell me: If I’d hired you to do the above images from scratch, given the basic idea, how many hours would you have spent?

I will look at submittals as I get them. I’d really like to get this person on-board well before February 1, so if interested, submit now. Please share!

 

 

 

 

 

Come work for us! Transit/Analyst Planner Job in Arlington VA or Portland OR

 

Jarrett Walker + Associates is excited to announce our next round of hiring, beginning today! JWA is seeking an analyst with interest or experience in public transit to work in either Arlington, Virginia or Portland, Oregon.  Our preference is for Arlington but we could hire in Portland for the ideal person.  You must be close enough to commute to one of these offices at least 3 days/week.

The position offers the potential to develop a range of transit planning skills. As a small firm, we can promote staff in response to skill and achievement. Everyone pitches in at many different levels, and there are many opportunities to learn on the job.

Duties include a wide range of data analysis, mapping, graphic design and/or writing tasks associated with public transit planning.

Position:

Transit GIS analyst/planner

Salary range:

$25-$35 hourly equivalent

Applications due by:

11:00pm PST, December 3, 2021

How to apply:

See below.

Jarrett Walker + Associates is a consulting firm that helps communities think about public transit planning, especially the design and redesign of bus networks. You can learn about us at our website (jarrettwalker.com) and at Jarrett’s blog (HumanTransit.org).

What does a typical day look like?

At JWA, analysts work on many different aspects of transit planning projects, using different tools and skillsets. For example, early on in a project, you could be asked to draw a map showing the frequency of each route in a transit network using Adobe Illustrator and QGIS. On another day, you might be asked to lay out a report in Adobe InDesign or create a set of charts in Excel or using R’s ggplot plotting package. Once you’re more experienced, you might make site visits to our clients in other cities to help with a design workshop or a public meeting. We also work together using R and other data analysis programming languages to conduct detailed analyses of existing transit service performance and compare different planning options.

Because our team is small and our projects are highly varied, we seek to hire and provide training to ensure the widest range of ability possible among our staff.

Required Skills and Experience

For this position, the following are requirements.  Do not apply if you cannot offer these.

  • Two or more years professional experience using the skills listed in this section, or formal training in these skills (such as at a college or university). Directly applicable coursework is valuable but not essential.
  • Fluency in written and spoken English. In particular, an ability to explain analytic ideas clearly.
  • Understanding and experience with analysis and visualization of quantitative or spatial information, including working with GIS.
  • Experience in cartography, evidenced in at least one mapping sample that is clear, accurate, and visually appealing.
  • Availability to start work in January 2022, at least 32 hours per week.
  • Willingness to travel occasionally (2-6 times per year) for projects.
  • Legal ability to work in the US as of January 2022.

Evaluation of Candidates

When we evaluate candidates, we will look for a combination of analysis skills and instincts; cartography skills; transit planning interest or experience; and interpersonal/teamwork skills. We may ask candidates to complete a practical test.

We will remove from applications information about each applicant’s sex, gender, race, ethnicity and name. Initial screening of applications will be performed without this information.  You are encouraged to submit your material with your name and these other identifiers (sex, gender, race, ethnicity) omitted, and to provide your name only in the submittal email.  If you do not do this our staff will do it for you.

Compensation, Benefits and Place of Work

Compensation will start in the range of $25-35/hour. Large raises in the first year are common. Our benefits program includes medical, dental, and disability insurance; a 401(k) program; subsidized and pre-tax transit benefits; paid sick leave; and paid time off.

During the pandemic most employees have been working from home for a majority of their work hours, but we do expect employees to be able to be in the office at least three days a week. In normal conditions, JWA allows employees to set work schedules that include working from home or other locations for some of their work time, but we do not permit fully remote employment. This position may require travel a few times a year, for client visits or conferences, once the public health situation has stabilized.

Growth and Development

We generally prefer to develop staff internally rather than hire at senior levels, so there is considerable opportunity for strong employees to advance.  All of our mid-level staff and one of our senior staff started in this position.

The position offers the potential to develop a range of transit planning skills needed to advance in the profession. Everyone pitches in at many different levels, so there is intensive cross-training that helps everyone grow their skills.  There are also opportunities to learn more advanced skills either on the job or through attendance of professional conferences or other structured training.

How to Apply

To apply, please send the following materials to [email protected]

  • 1-page cover letter explaining your interest in the position.
  • 1 or 2-page resume describing your relevant experience and skills – technical, planning, and interpersonal. Please include experience working on projects or in teams with people from different backgrounds.
  • Links or electronic files for up to three (3) samples of your work. If possible, please include a map, a piece of writing, and a demonstration of a spatial analysis. (A single sample may satisfy more than one of these requests.)
    • If you submit a university group project or other collaborative document with multiple authors that is not solely your work (i.e. government agency, nonprofit or consulting reports), please include a short note clarifying your role in the production of the document. For example, if you provide as a work sample a group project from a university course for which you designed all of the maps but were not the primary author of the text, please include a note saying so.
  • Contact information for 1 to 3 references who can attest to your experience with the skills listed above. Please do not include any information about your prior compensation.

Do not put any information in the email itself that you want to be used in the evaluation.    The cover letter and all other materials should be attachments.  The email must present your name and contact details.

Again, you are encouraged to anonymize all information by removing your name and references to sex, gender, race, or ethnicity, and to provide your name only in the email.  If you do not, we will do this for you.

Diversity and Inclusion

JWA follows an equal opportunity employment policy and employs personnel without regard to race, color, religion, sex/gender (including pregnancy, gender identity, and sexual orientation), national origin, age, disability, and any other legally protected status.

This policy also applies to management of staff with regards to internal promotions, training, opportunities for advancement, and terminations. It also applies to our interactions with outside vendors, subcontractors, and the general public.

Job: Come Work for us! Transit Analyst Position. Apply before Nov 15!

You get to draw cool visualizations, and invent new ones!


Our firm has a fulltime opening for a transit analyst.  (Also, watch this space for a senior planner and project manager position to be posted soon!)

Here are the details:

Jarrett Walker and Associates is a consulting firm that helps communities think about public transit planning issues, especially the design and redesign of bus networks. The firm was initially built around Jarrett Walker’s book Human Transit and his 25 years of experience in the field. Today, our professional staff of nine leads planning projects across North America, with an overseas practice including Europe, Russia, and Australia / New Zealand.

You can learn about us at our website (jarrettwalker.com) and at Jarrett’s blog (HumanTransit.org). For a sense of our basic approach to transit planning, see the introduction to Jarrett’s book Human Transit, which is available online. For a typical report of ours, showing some of the analysis we do, see here.

We are seeking a transit analyst based in Portland, Oregon, or Arlington (Crystal City), Virginia.  The position offers the potential to grow a career in transit planning. As a small firm, we can promote staff in response to skill and achievement, without waiting for a more senior position to become vacant.  Everyone pitches in at many different levels, and there are many opportunities to learn on the job.

Duties include a wide range of data analysis and mapping tasks associated with public transit planning.

Required Skills and Experience

For this position, the following are requirements. Please respond only if you offer all of the following:

  • At least two years of professional experience using the skills listed in this section, OR formal training in these skills (such as at a college or university). Directly-applicable coursework is valuable but not essential.
  • Fluency in spoken English and proficiency at writing in English. In particular, an ability to explain analytic ideas clearly.
  • Understanding of basic statistics and experience with analysis and visualization of quantitative and statistical information.
  • Experience in spatial data analysis (GIS).
  • Experience working in Adobe Illustrator.
  • Experience in cartography, evidenced in at least one mapping sample that is clear, accurate, and visually appealing.
  • Availability to start full-time work in Portland or Arlington on before the first week of January, 2019, at least 32 hours per week.
  • Legal ability to work in the US.

Other Desired Skills and Experience

The following are desirable but not essential.  Candidates with the required skills listed above but none or few of these desired skills are still encouraged to apply.

If you have any of the following skills, please describe them in your application

  • Experience with public transit issues.
  • Experience using analysis programming languages (such as R).
  • Experience with qGIS, Remix or InDesign software.
  • Experience in advanced database analysis. (Postgres/PostGIS, MySQL, etc)
  • Expertise with transit-focused routing software, such as OpenTripPlanner.
  • Experience describing issues from multiple points of view, including the perspectives of different types of people, and different professions.
  • Graduate degree in urban planning, transportation, or a related field.
  • Foreign language ability. Spanish is especially useful but other language skills are valued as well.
  • Experience working with minority and disadvantaged communities.
  • Experience managing small teams.
  • Experience and comfort in public speaking.

Compensation, Benefits and Place of Work

Compensation will depend on skills, but will start in the range of $25-32/hour depending on skills and experience.  Raises of over 10% in the first year are typical for excellent work.  Our benefits program includes medical, dental, and disability insurance; a 401(k) program; subsidized transit passes; paid sick leave; and paid time off.

This position will require working out of either our Portland, Oregon, office or our Arlington, Virginia, office. JWA does allow employees to set work schedules that include working from home or other locations.  This position requires travel, to work with clients directly, at least a few times per year.

How to Apply

To apply, please send the following materials to [email protected] .

  • 1-page cover letter, explaining your interest in the position.
  • 1- or 2-page resume, describing your relevant experience and skills.
  • Links or electronic files for up to three (3) samples of your work. If possible, please include a map, a piece of writing, and a demonstration ofa spatial analysis. (A single sample may satisfy more than one of these requests.)
  • Contact information for 1 to 3 references who can attest to your experience with the skills listed above.
  • Please do not include any information about your prior compensation.

We will be redacting from your materials any explicit information about your name, race, gender, or sex.

Diversity and Inclusion

JWA follows an equal opportunity employment policy and employs personnel without regard to race, creed, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender expression, age, physical or mental ability, veteran status, military obligations, and marital status.

This policy also applies to management of staff with regards to internal promotions, training, opportunities for advancement, and terminations. It also applies to our interactions with outside vendors, subcontractors and the general public. 

Timeline

The deadline for applying is 11:00 pm Pacific Standard Time on Thursday, November 15th. Submitting earlier is advantageous as we will review applications as we receive them.

We will ask a select group of applicants to perform a simple analysis and mapmaking test on their own, and then to join us for an interview. The test will be assigned on November 20 and due on November 27. We wish to hold interviews (in person or by phone/web) on November 29 or 30.

Thank you for reviewing this listing. Please share it with others you know who might be interested. We look forward to hearing from you.

 

Job in the Sun: Senior Planner / Scheduler for Palm Beach County Transit

Just got home from a great trip to Palm Beach County, Florida, where I sampled the famous walkability of West Palm Beach (and Palm Beach) and had a series of workshops and public events with PalmTran, the local transit agency.

PalmTran is at that point where it needs strong planning leadership.  They will have Senior Planner / Scheduler position open in May.  This job needs someone with a track record of finding efficiency in schedules and routes, managing difficult data sources, thinking geometrically about network structure, and leading a planning team.  $90,ooo/year.

Palm Beach County is the geographically largest county in the eastern US, with an interesting mix of vibrant coastal cities, barrier island cities, typical postwar suburbia, and rural Everglades communities.  Many of its key cities are serious about walkable urbanism — West Palm Beach is the most famous, but many others are making the effort.

If you’re interested, please watch the website at palmtran.org and email an application to [email protected]

New Opportunity for Experienced Transit Planners

JWlogoSquareOur firm is busier than it has ever been, and we need to grow quickly to keep up with our demand.  So I want to hear from transit planning professionals who’d like to be a part of it.  If you’re not familiar with our firm, you can read about it here.

This is not a specific job listing with a specific deadline.  Instead, it’s a general notice of interest, which will lead to one or more hires whenever we find the right match and can make a deal that both of us are excited about.

Are you a working transit planner (in consulting or public sector) who’d like a more exciting and adventurous job where your advancement depends entirely on your own skills, creativity, and initiative?  Would you like the chance to grow a strong public profile?   Read on if you:

  •  have a track record of successful project management.  This can be either in consulting or the public sector.
  • have over 2 years of marketable transport planning and/or policy experience.  Direct  network planning experience is ideal but adjacent experience (e.g. transport policy, wayfinding, multimodal planning, corridor studies) can be workable if you are strong on other factors.  In any case, the key word is marketable.  Your resume, as it stands now, must make you interesting to clients as a key part of a consulting team, and also show us you’re ready to handle a diversity of transit planning situations.
  • know a bit about our work and reputation, and are generally supportive of our approaches to things.  Reading a bit of my book, or this blog (try the Basics category), or one of our recent reports (like this one),  will tell you if that’s you.
  • are willing to locate (at least temporarily) in Portland, Oregon.  If you are (or want to be) elsewhere in the US, we are open to deals where you come to Portland for some intensive time, make yourself indispensable, then set up an office on your home turf, but this sets a higher bar for your qualifications.  Our strong preference is to have you here, with us, exchanging ideas and influence in that casual way that only comes from seeing each other.  It must be legal for you to work in the US without major hassles for us apart from a letter of sponsorship.  (This is easy for Canadian urban planners but we haven’t researched other countries.)
  • … can show strong experience with synthetic thinking.  Synthetic means putting things together.  It’s the opposite of analytic, which means taking things apart.  Analysis skills are important too, but you thrive in situations where there are several criteria of success that can’t be converted into a single measure, so you need to come up with ideas that solve several problems at once.  You also enjoy leading others through this kind of thinking, encouraging them to contribute solutions while keeping them on task.
  • … are good at explaining and engaging.  You’re good at public speaking and other interactive events, or think you could grow into that.  Perhaps you aspire to do some of what I do, building a national and international reputation as an explainer, not just a technical expert.
  • … can handle travel, much of it interesting.  We are a national and international practice.  Mostly our clients are all over North America, but we also have strong relationships in New Zealand and Australia, and are currently working in Russia and Iceland.  I travel about 1/3 of the time (and that’s my limit).  The more senior you are with us, and the more you want to grow into a role like mine, the more likely it is that you would too.

It is an especially exciting time to join our firm, because we’re growing from a very small base, and that means two key things.  (1)  You will have a lot of influence on the firm’s next few decisions (I consult heavily with staff and love to delegate) and (2) you will have the opportunity to work on lot of different things.

Compensation and benefits?  For the right person, we will make the right deal based on your experience and salary history.  If you are used to a government job, moving to consulting is almost always a step down in benefits, but often a step up in challenge and opportunity for advancement. If you’re already in consulting, we will be more likely to match your salary and benefit history, at least after 3-6 months.  We prefer to hire a little low and then give steep raises in the first year; raises of over 20% in one year have been common for excellent staff.

Deadline?  As soon as possible, but if this post is still here, it means I’m still interested in hearing from you, because we may make decisions at any time, and we may hire one or several people.

Obviously, we do not discriminate based on race, ethnicity, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or any other trait that would not be relevant to your success, and we encourage applications from across all of those dimensions of diversity.

If you think this is you, and you’re interested, send me a resume, cover letter, and some samples of your best work (reports, images, audio, video) using the little envelope icon in the menu bar above.  If you think this might be you, but you have questions, use the same email.

Thanks for reading!  Please spread the word!

Job: Transit planning manager in Las Vegas

We had a great time this last winter working with the planning staff at Las Vegas's transit agency RTC.  Las Vegas may not be your idea of a transit city, but many parts of the network are fantastically busy, and it's a time of great transformations including (a) the emergence of frequency branding, (b) the Maryland Parkway corridor project, serving the university and airport, and (c) a major study about the future of transit on the Las Vegas strip, already a fantastically bus (and profitable) bus corridor.  

They have a manager of transit planning position open!  Have a look.

job: Ridership Data Technician in Baltimore

Here's an opportunity perfect for someone who is interested in transit data and monitoring. 

Via Baltimore MTA, the region's transit agency:

If you or someone you know likes data collection and analysis on a large scale and wants to put those skills to use in public transit, then there’s a new opportunity in the MTA’s Office of Service Development – The Ridership Data Technician (or RDT).

Full details and to apply: http://tinyurl.com/kg7nop3

MTA’s use of Automated Passenger Counters (APCs) continues to grow. We are just really getting started and are looking for an innovative and tech- and data-savvy person to join our team to take our APC program to the next level – allowing better planning, analysis, scheduling, and reporting for stakeholders inside and outside the agency.

If you’re interested, apply using the link above. Or, feel free to forward to someone you know that might be a good fit.

It sounds like a great position for someone who is familiar with APCs and current methods, and who has ideas about exciting new places to take this type of data. If that's you, or someone you know, it could be worth a look!