Planner or Senior Planner

Metropolitan Council•Minneapolis, MN

5d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Metropolitan Council's Metro Transit Division is seeking a Planner or Senior Planner to join the Service Development department. This role will focus on planning, analyzing, and scheduling existing and future bus and rail service schedules, with a specific emphasis on recommending and implementing Transit Advantage projects such as the Better Bus Routes program and bus lanes. This posting will establish a six (6) month eligibility pool for current and future openings. The Service Development department is responsible for planning, analyzing, and scheduling existing and future bus and rail service schedules. Planners within the Service Development department analyze, develop, recommend, and implement improvements and innovations to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of Metro Transit and regional transit service.

Requirements

Planner: Any of the following combinations of experience (in city, urban, or environmental planning or related area) and completed education (degree field of study in Urban Planning, Geography, Urban Studies or closely related field): A master's degree with one (1) year experience, A bachelor's degree with three (3) years of experience, An associate degree with five (5) years of experience, A high school diploma or GED with seven (7) years of experience
Senior Planner: Any of the following combinations of experience (in city, urban, or environmental planning or related area) and completed education (degree field of study in Urban Planning, Geography, Urban Studies or closely related field): A master's degree with two (2) years experience, A bachelor's degree with four (4) years of experience, An associate degree with six (6) years of experience, A high school diploma or GED with eight (8) years of experience
Intermediate skills in MS Word and Excel, ability to perform technical analysis using spreadsheet and database programs, knowledge of GIS highly desirable.
Knowledge of policy analysis and planning principles, methods, and theory.
Knowledge of Council policies, practices, and operational procedures (in the policy area relevant to the job).
Basic knowledge of the governmental environment in which the Council works, as it applies to the policy area of the position.
Ability to relate responsibilities to policy and planning process.
Ability to communicate effectively, orally, and in writing, to internal and external stakeholders.
Ability to exercise sound professional judgment and consistently and effectively apply the policy guidelines of the Council.
Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with all relevant Council stakeholders.
Ability to analyze and interpret Council policy and apply it effectively in the policy analysis or development process.

Nice To Haves

Degree in City, Urban, or Environmental Planning.
Experience in planning transit/transportation projects.
Experience with novel data analysis and interpretation using ArcGIS, R, Python, or other software packages.
Experience and skill in presentations and public speaking with ability to tailor material for different audiences.
Experience promoting an equitable, positive, and respectful work environment that values culture and diversity among all employees.

Responsibilities

Supports and administers Transit Advantage planning assignments; gathers and analyzes data on assigned projects; and prepares summary reports.
Performs a portion of a major project as a team member under general supervision.
Examples of projects include Better Bus Routes and bus lane implementations.
Coordinates with transitway and roadway projects, including participation in technical working groups, providing input on Transit Advantage elements to be incorporated with a project, and coordinating with internal stakeholders on review of designs.
Performs system performance monitoring, including understanding the impact of Transit Advantage projects, developing techniques to perform pre- and post-implementation analysis, and communicating performance information to internal and external stakeholders.
Researches, investigates, and surveys available sources for information related to various planning projects.
Prepares plans, maps, diagrams and graphs, and drafts staff reports.
Collaborate with internal planners and engineers to review roadway projects and design Transit Advantage projects.
May act as liaison with interest groups, communities, counties, regional, and state agencies.
Provides assistance on technical and procedural aspects of planning.
Performs other related duties.
Manages and administers Transit Advantage planning assignments; gathers and analyzes data on assigned projects; and prepares summary reports.
Independently leads major projects as a team member with general supervision.
Manages elements of the overall Transit Advantages program such as the Better Bus Routes program.
Analyze and recommend future projects; prepare budgets and capital improvements program or operating funding requests.
Analyzes and interprets existing policies, plans and implementation programs relating to Transit Advantages.
Relates plans to goals and policies and analyzes possible conflicts or contradictions; prepares graphic material and prepares summary reports.
Develops scopes of work for various levels pf plans, projects, and guidance documents and manage assigned projects.
May oversee the work of lower-level professional planning staff, technicians and student interns on project basis.