Intelligent Transportation Systems Research Engineer

Degree and area of specialization:

Required M.S. in civil engineering or closely related systems engineering discipline. Transportation focus preferred.

Minimum number of years and type of relevant work experience:

Minimum of 3 years of professional (non-school) experience required. Preferred education or experience includes transportation and traffic engineering, traffic operations, research and development, statistics, traffic modeling, spatial information systems, intelligent transportation systems, and data collection, transmission, and management. At least a basic familiarity with GIS, web applications, and scripting is beneficial. EIT and Professional Engineer Licensure preferred. Candidates must have excellent oral and written communication skills, be able to work in a collaborative environment, a do so with minimal supervision.

Principal duties:

The Wisconsin Traffic Operations and Safety Laboratory (TOPS Lab), part of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, is a comprehensive state-of-the-art program spanning many elements of transportation research and development. The TOPS Lab is the focal point for traffic operations and safety research at UW-Madison, providing a forum for classroom teaching and experimentation with the latest transportation technologies and systems. With over 40 research projects active at any time, the TOPS Lab also provides research and engineering services to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) and other local, state, and federal organizations.

The TOPS Lab Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Program area works closely with the WisDOT Bureau of Traffic Operations (BTO) and associated multistate transportation operations programs on a variety of initiatives related to transportation technologies, systems engineering, spatial information and asset management, and traveler information.

The TOPS Lab is seeking a qualified individual to fill the position of Intelligent Transportation Systems Research and Development Engineer. This position offers an excellent opportunity for research, technical growth, and project management responsibilities, while developing and using state-of-the-art tools to improve travel throughout the region. The selected individual will work under the guidance of transportation engineering faculty at UW-Madison and will report to the intelligent transportation systems (ITS) program manager.

Work activities:

• In coordination with TOPS researchers and WisDOT staff, manage various aspects of the TOPS ITS program, which covers a wide breadth of transportation technologies research, development, and support services;
• Manage the development and maintenance of spatial information on ITS and communication systems, relying on software including but not limited to Oracle Spatial, AutoCAD, and ArcGIS;
• Manage the tracking, updates, and spatial data integration for the Wisconsin Traffic Operations and Infrastructure Plan and its relationship both to existing ITS spatial inventory and the statewide ITS architecture;
• Manage the research and development support project for the next generation traffic operations asset management system to be adopted by WisDOT BTO;
• Work with TOPS senior staff on ITS evaluations related to hardware, software, deployments, economics, and benefit-cost research and analysis of transportation technologies;
• Work with TOPS senior staff on performance management tasks involving large sets of traffic operations data from detectors of all types and private party vehicle probe data;
• Manage the TOPS Lab support for the Wisconsin 511 traveler information system, in coordination with WisDOT staff;
• Assist TOPS staff in developing freeway operations tools associated with GIS and the WisTransPortal transportation data hub;

A mission of the TOPS Lab is advancing knowledge through scientific research, and as part of this role, the successful candidate will contribute to academic publication and presentations related to this mission and the position.

This position is located at the UW-Madison College of Engineering. Some travel within Wisconsin, e.g., to the WisDOT Statewide Traffic Operations Center in Milwaukee, and to national meetings will be required. Travel expenses will be reimbursed according to UW policies and procedures.