Transportation Engineers: Career Profile
Develop plans for surface transportation projects, according to established engineering standards and state or federal construction policy. Prepare designs, specifications, or estimates for transportation facilities. Plan modifications of existing streets, highways, or freeways to improve traffic flow.
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What Do Transportation Engineers Do?
Typical responsibilities of transportation engineers cover:
- Design or prepare plans for new transportation systems or parts of systems, such as airports, commuter trains, highways, streets, bridges, drainage structures, or roadway lighting.
- Check construction plans, design calculations, or cost estimations to ensure completeness, accuracy, or conformity to engineering standards or practices.
- Prepare administrative, technical, or statistical reports on traffic-operation matters, such as accidents, safety measures, or pedestrian volume or practices.
- Plan alteration or modification of existing transportation structures to improve safety or function.
- Confer with contractors, utility companies, or government agencies to discuss plans, specifications, or work schedules.
- Present data, maps, or other information at construction-related public hearings or meetings.
- Prepare final project layout drawings that include details such as stress calculations.
- Investigate traffic problems and recommend methods to improve traffic flow or safety.
What Transportation Engineers Need to Know
Successful transportation engineers rely on a mix of skills and domain knowledge.
Top Skills
The abilities that matter most in this role, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:
Core Knowledge
Related Job Titles
This career also goes by job titles like:
- Airport Engineer
- Civil Transportation Engineer
- Engineer
- Highway Civil Engineer
- Highway Engineer
- Highway Project Engineer
- Project Engineer
- Rail Engineer
Employment and Demand
There are about 388,857 transportation engineers working in the United States today. This occupation is expected to grow by +1.1% over the projection horizon.
Salary for Transportation Engineers
| Statistic | Value |
|---|---|
| Annual median | $120,210 |
| Hourly median | $57.79 |
| 10th percentile | $68,622 |
| 25th percentile | $94,416 |
| 75th percentile | $146,004 |
| 90th percentile | $171,798 |
Compensation varies based on experience, location, and industry.
Pay by State
| State | Annual median salary |
|---|---|
| California | $118,450 |
| Rhode Island | $112,250 |
| Alaska | $107,240 |
| Washington | $105,090 |
| New Mexico | $104,600 |
| Massachusetts | $104,450 |
| Mississippi | $103,940 |
| New Jersey | $103,690 |
| Oregon | $103,070 |
| New York | $102,440 |
| Louisiana | $102,350 |
| District of Columbia | $102,170 |
| Connecticut | $101,800 |
| Minnesota | $101,440 |
| Maryland | $100,320 |
| Kentucky | $100,200 |
| Delaware | $99,820 |
| South Carolina | $99,680 |
| Oklahoma | $99,540 |
| Nebraska | $99,360 |
| Nevada | $98,690 |
| Alabama | $98,100 |
| Florida | $97,810 |
| Tennessee | $97,730 |
| Illinois | $97,640 |
| Virginia | $96,210 |
| North Dakota | $96,160 |
| Wyoming | $95,800 |
| South Dakota | $95,110 |
| Texas | $95,050 |
| Indiana | $95,000 |
| Idaho | $94,990 |
| Hawaii | $94,970 |
| Maine | $94,880 |
| Iowa | $94,500 |
| North Carolina | $93,590 |
| Arizona | $93,500 |
| Ohio | $93,480 |
| Missouri | $93,020 |
| Pennsylvania | $92,460 |
| New Hampshire | $92,020 |
| Utah | $92,000 |
| Wisconsin | $90,770 |
| West Virginia | $88,200 |
| Kansas | $86,780 |
| Vermont | $85,720 |
| Michigan | $85,550 |
| Arkansas | $81,930 |
| Georgia | $81,030 |
| Montana | $80,390 |
| Guam | $72,770 |
| Puerto Rico | $60,510 |
Top-Paying U.S. Regions
Compensation for transportation engineers differ across the country. Top regions by median wage:
| Region | Median annual wage | Share of U.S. jobs | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Far Western US | $113,900 | 21.6% | 1.31 |
| New England | $101,770 | 5.2% | 1.09 |
| Middle Atlantic | $99,175 | 12.9% | 0.87 |
| Southwest | $95,399 | 12.3% | 1.00 |
| Southeast | $95,315 | 23.6% | 1.02 |
| Plains States | $95,053 | 5.6% | 0.86 |
| Great Lakes | $93,032 | 11.4% | 0.84 |
| Other U.S. Territories | $62,858 | 0.7% | 1.45 |
Top Metro Areas
| Metro area | State | Median annual wage | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | CA | $130,310 | 5,190 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | CA | $129,260 | 3,180 |
| Redding, CA | CA | $127,130 | 330 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | CA | $126,560 | 9,920 |
| Napa, CA | CA | $122,820 | 160 |
| Kennewick-Richland, WA | WA | $121,170 | 500 |
| Walla Walla, WA | WA | $119,080 | 210 |
| Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL | FL | $118,830 | 340 |
Top Industries Employing Transportation Engineers
Most transportation engineers are concentrated in the following sectors:
| Industry | Employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 202,800 | $99,670 |
| Construction | 44,580 | $82,970 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services | 5,010 | $108,140 |
| Manufacturing | 4,190 | $104,310 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | 3,180 | $117,740 |
| Real Estate and Rental and Leasing | 2,500 | $90,510 |
| Educational Services | 2,070 | $102,000 |
| Utilities | 1,940 | $113,380 |
Transportation Engineers work in the following industries:
Tech Stack
- Computer aided design CAD software: Autodesk AutoCAD (hot technology)
- Computer aided design CAD software: Autodesk AutoCAD Civil 3D (hot technology)
- Computer aided design CAD software: Bentley MicroStation (hot technology)
- Geographic information system: ESRI ArcGIS software (hot technology)
- Spreadsheet software: Microsoft Excel (hot technology)
- Office suite software: Microsoft Office software (hot technology)
- Electronic mail software: Microsoft Outlook (hot technology)
- Presentation software: Microsoft PowerPoint (hot technology)
- Project management software: Microsoft Project (hot technology)
- Word processing software: Microsoft Word (hot technology)
- Project management software: Oracle Primavera Enterprise Project Portfolio Management (hot technology)
- Object or component oriented development software: Python (hot technology)
The Day-to-Day Environment
The work environment for transportation engineers tends to involve the following characteristics:
- Telephone Conversations
- Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams
- Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team
- Indoors, Environmentally Controlled
Education and Training
Typical transportation engineers positions require a bachelor’s degree as the typical entry-level education. The role falls in Considerable Preparation Needed (Job Zone 4), reflecting the level of preparation typically expected.
Similar Occupations
Similar Occupations
- Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers (Supplemental)
- Construction Managers (Primary-Long)
- Architectural and Engineering Managers (Supplemental)
- Brownfield Redevelopment Specialists and Site Managers (Supplemental)
- Logistics Engineers (Supplemental)
- Project Management Specialists (Supplemental)
- Aerospace Engineers (Supplemental)
- Civil Engineers (Primary-Short)
Degree Programs
Aspiring transportation engineers commonly pursue programs in:
Engineering
7 programs across 2 majors
Sources
This profile draws on the following authoritative sources:
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) for employment and wage data by state and industry.
- BLS Employment Projections for total employment and growth forecasts.
- O*NET (Occupational Information Network) for skills, knowledge, tasks, work activities, work context, technology, and education-zone data.
SOC code: 17-2051.01 (Civil Engineers).
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