E26/27 Route Planner (Transportation)

Arlington Public Schools•Arlington, VA

3d•Onsite

About The Position

Plans and schedules school bus routes for students (Special Needs/General Education) APS-wide, performing related analytical activities. This involves using APS route planning and GPS software to generate alternatives and decision-support information for safe, timely, effective, and efficient student transportation. The role considers factors such as school boundaries, road networks, traffic patterns, student needs, and fleet capacity. Analytical tasks include examining route coupling options, fuel costs, and short-term adjustments for weather or construction. The position also involves preliminary analysis of enrollment changes, school configurations, and performance data to identify areas for improvement.

Requirements

An Associate degree in business, logistics, information technology or systems, transportation, or any field related to the core responsibilities of this class or, An equivalent combination of education, experience, and training.
Three years of progressively responsible experience in bus transportation route planning and scheduling comparable to the size and scope of APS, which included the use of planning and scheduling software comparable to that used by APS.
Experience working with people of diverse backgrounds and tailoring and delivering work products and services to meet the needs of diverse groups is required.
Knowledge of bus route planning and scheduling in consideration of a multiplicity of geographic, demographic and other factors (such as road networks, traffic patterns, locations, speeds, times, distances, fleet capability/availability and students with special needs).
Knowledge of software that assists in route planning and scheduling in consideration of such parameters.
Knowledge of related bus transportation operations (such as dispatching and safe bus operation) to conduct school bus transportation planning and scheduling, APS-wide.
Full performance user-level knowledge of and skill in, or ability to rapidly acquire this level of knowledge of and skill, the route planning/scheduling software of APS.
Knowledge of, or ability to rapidly acquire knowledge of, road networks, traffic patterns, locations of schools (and key transport-related factors linked to them) and related geographic and demographic information pertinent to transport of K-12 (and younger) students in Arlington County, altogether, to conduct route planning and scheduling for APS student transport.
Knowledge of, or ability to rapidly acquire knowledge of, key Federal, State and local regulations, Arlington School Board policies, and APS initiatives, guidelines and standards applying to the planning and scheduling of K-12 student transport.
Skill in problem solving to select, organize and logically process relevant information (verbal, numerical or abstract) to solve a problem.
Skill in written communication to understand written information (including instructions, descriptions and ideas), and to express such information in writing.
Skill in oral communication to understand verbal information (including instructions, descriptions and ideas), and to express such information verbally to others.
Interpersonal skills to interact with contacts in a business-like, customer service-oriented manner by establishing and maintaining effective working relationships and working in harmony with supervisors, staff, students, and the general public.
Skill in using a computer, modem, office suite software (such as MS Office), and telecommunications devices to plan, schedule, communicate, word process, research (Internet), help train others, etc.
Ability and willingness to work in a fluid environment under pressure of changing priorities, deadlines, and peak periods.

Nice To Haves

Experience using school bus routes to plan student bus routes is desired at the time of placement into this position.
Experience using knowledge of Arlington County road networks, neighborhoods, school boundaries and other local information to plan ground transportation routes/schedules, as pertinent to effective route planning for transportation of K-12 students, is desired at the time of placement into this position.
CDL Class B with Passenger (P) and School Bus (S) endorsements are preferred.
Must successfully qualify for and obtain a Commercial Driver's License (CDL) with Passenger (P) and School Bus (S) endorsements within one year of accepting the Route Planner position as a condition of continued employment in the role.

Responsibilities

Plans and schedules school bus routes for students (Special Needs/General Education), APS-wide.
Maintains and uses APS route planning and GPS software to generate alternatives and decision-support information for school bus transport (routes/stops/runs/times/buses/etc.).
Ensures safe, timely, effective, and efficient pick-up and drop-off of students consistent with school boundaries, school locations, neighborhood layouts, road network traffic patterns, times, distances, special needs of students, related geographic and demographic factors, bus fleet capacity data, and other factors.
Conducts analysis of route coupling options, fuel costs, and short-term alternatives considering weather, construction, etc.
Performs preliminary analysis of “what-if” changes in student enrollments, school configurations and other variables, as well as performance data and performance trends, to highlight areas of problematic or suboptimum transportation performance and to help identify options for improvement.
Tracks buses and riders using Geographic Positioning System (GPS) information.
Schedules bus transportation (routes/runs/stops/times/sequences/buses/etc.) for all students using various computer software, mainly computer-assisted routing and GPS software and covering a multiplicity of factors, including but not limited to data on APS buses/equipment/drivers, students, neighborhoods, road networks, traffic patterns, driver availability and routes.
Plans for the school year, after-school programs, summer school, field trips, other special events, etc.
Adjusts all schedules, as needed, on a daily, short-term, and long-term basis.
Assigns students to routes, completes written schedules, and submits schedules to supervisor for review, approval, and distribution.
Analyzes various types of data for a range of purposes, including route coupling options, mileage data, vehicle load data, fuel costs, and short-term alternatives considering weather, construction, etc.
Provides input from route planning/scheduling and general analytical perspectives on student transport performance and performance improvement options in support of the supervisor.
Analyzes long-term route/schedule attenuates by considering what-if changes in student enrollment levels, school configurations and other variables as well as performance data and performance trends.
Maintains the security of data of all types.
Stores and retrieves information about general education and special needs students, vehicles, routes/schedules for transporting students, reroutes and reschedules transportation for students, as pertinent to conditions by specifying all parameters.
May coordinate with the Office of Special Education to respond to special needs transportation requests.
May develop and maintain record keeping systems and databases on Bus Drivers and Bus Attendants for students to monitor their work and support management decision-making on deployment of resources.
May attend Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings where individual student needs are discussed to offer input concerning transportation alternatives.
Maintains situational awareness (weather, traffic, roadwork, early and late school openings and closings, etc.) to make rapid, effective adjustments to transportation services in alignment with environmental conditions and instructional operations.
Uses the system to produce required and special reports.
Quality assures data before entry into databases or use in reports.
May coordinate software issues with a vendor or the Department of Information Services.
May also interface with instructional personnel regarding student data information systems.
Stays abreast of developments directly affecting APS school bus transportation routing/scheduling, including but not limited to vehicle/fleet data, enrollment data, road network data, software standards and issues emanating from the Virginia Department of Education, the School Board, APS officials, advocates for students with special needs, and other sources.
Provides basic training to co-workers in Transportation Services at authorized usage levels of pertinent system modules.
Responds to internal help desk calls, coordinates with supervisor or others, as needed, and in conformance with procedures, etc.
Uses computer and modern office software suites for communication (email), word processing, research (Internet), and other general office applications, in addition to specialized software for bus route planning/scheduling and performance analysis.
May act as, or for, the supervisor, as assigned.
Performs related duties, as assigned.