Requisition No: 130843
Agency: Department of Transportation
Working Title: PLANNING SPECIALIST III - 55011774
Position Number: 55011774
Salary:  $46,696.39 - $60,430.62
Posting Closing Date: 09/21/2020
STATE OF FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
JOB POSTING DESCRIPTION
701 / PLANNING AND ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT OFFICE
OPEN COMPETITIVE
CAREER SERVICE
CONTACT PERSON:  LISA LUBERZA
CONTACT PHONE NUMBER: 813 975-6748
CONTACT EMAIL ADDRESS: LISA.LUBERZA@DOT.STATE.FL.US
The State of Florida offers an excellent benefits package including paid holidays, vacation and sick leave, several low-premium healthcare options, tuition waivers, and training opportunities for professional growth and development.  Calculate the estimated annual value of working for the State of Florida here. For additional benefit information available to State of Florida employees, go to http://www.mybenefits.myflorida.com/
SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS: You may be required to provide your Social Security Number to conduct required verifications. Male applicants born on or after October 1, 1962 will not be eligible for hire or promotion in the Career Service, or appointment in the Selected Exempt Service (SES) or Senior Management Service (SMS) unless they are registered with the Selective Services System (SSS) before their 26th birthday, or have a Letter of Registration Exemption from the SSS.
THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION VALUES AND SUPPORTS EMPLOYMENT OF INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES.  QUALIFIED INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES ARE ENCOURAGED TO APPLY. In accordance with Section 110.112, Florida Statutes, and the Florida Department of Transportation’s Individuals with Disabilities Affirmative Action Plan, the agency is committed to ensuring affirmative action and equal employment opportunity for qualified individuals with disabilities.  Upon request and as appropriate, reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities may be provided.  Interested persons should contact the Florida Department of Transportation’s Equal Opportunity Office located at 605 Suwannee Street, Tallahassee, Florida 32399 or call (850) 414-4747 for assistance.
POSITION DESCRIPTION: Develops, updates and maintains intermediate and long range transportation plans. This includes identifying and evaluating transportation problems and needs, developing and testing alternative scenarios to address those needs, evaluating the effectiveness and impacts of proposed transportation improvements and recommending a set of improvements, policies and other actions to form the plans. Activities include assisting in the development, calibration and validation of the systems planning models; developing, coding and editing computerized highway and transit networks; testing transportation alternatives with systems planning models and sketch planning techniques; and evaluating the results of systems planning aternative tests. Activities also include the application of land use alloction models and evaluation of results to access the inter-relationships between transportation and land use. Duties also include assisting the unit supervisor in managing all phases of the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Anaylsis and other major systems planning efforts.
Conducts special transportation studies to evaluate current and future operating conditions, congestion levels and improvement needs on corridors and in smaill subareas of the District. This includes testing the impacts and effectiveness of proposed transportation improvements in those corridors and subareas. Activities include preparation of highway and transit networks and other planning model inputs; application of systems planning models and sketch planning techniques to test base cases and alternative scenarios; identifying transportation deficiencies and needs; developing alternatives to address identified needs; and evaluating the effectiveness of proposed improvements. This includes assessing the impacts and effectiveness of proposed Express Lanes and transit facilities.
Conducts the collection and preparation of a wide variety of data needed for planning models and studies, including data related to socioeconomic factors, land use, traffic volumes and operating conditions, travel behavior and preferences, roadway and transit system characteristics, and travel costs. Identifies the specific data needs for various planning studies. Designs and maintains planning data bases. Compiles existing data form available sources and edits/prepares that data into usable formats. Designs and implements surveys to collect new data. Provides quality control checks on existing and newly collected data, forward and backward projection of data, and statistical analysis of data. Assists the MPOs and other agencies in theirs data collection and preparation activities. Updates and maintans valid set of Urban Area Boundaries and Functional Classification of Roadways for the District. Assesses changing conditions on the roadway system and makes recommedations as appropriate to Central Office to make changes in the Functional Classification System.
Prepares Systems and Design traffic projections, design factors (K – Seasonal Factor, D – Directional Factor, and T – Truck Factor) and Equivalent Single Action Load (ESAL) Accumulations for pavement design; roadway and bridge design, Project Development & Environmental (PD&E) studies and traffic operations and safety studies. Activities include developing and maintaining a variety of methodologies for preparing traffic projections for a variety of needs and stituations; preparing traffic projections; developing and applying quality control checks and measures for traffic projections; and reviewing the reasonableness and accuracy of traffic projections from other sources.
Performs Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QA/QC) functions for the District Traffic Count Program. Activities include checking the accuracy of traffic counts, recommending traffic count site locations and the types of traffic data that may need to be collected, and analyzing the effectiveness of the overall program.
KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES: Knowledge of transportation systems planning processes and methods, including areawide long range transportation planning, corridor planning and subarea planning; Knowledge of travel demand modeling methods; Knowledge of design traffic forecasting and analysis methodologies and procedures; Knowledge of data collection and analysis methods; Ability to effectively use word processing and speadsheet software; Ability to communicate verbally and in writing; Ability to prepare reports, correspondence and transmittals; Ability to manage, track and complete diverse assignments simultaneously on schedule; Skilled in identifying problems and issues and developing solutions; Knowledge of general systems planning; Ability to develop new and special techniques and methodologies for unique situations; Ability to work in a team environment; Skilled in coordination and collaboration; Ability to be pro-active and work independently.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: A bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university and 1 year of professional experience in the field of transportation, planning, public administration, engineering or logistics to which the position is assigned; or Registration as a Professional Engineer in accordance with Florida Statute 471. A master’s degree from an accredited college or university in engineering or transportation can substitute for one year of the required experience. Professional or nonprofessional experience (including internships or co-ops) as described above can substitute on a year-for-year basis for the required college education.
As a CANDIDATE, you may be required to provide documentation (i.e. HIGH SCHOOL DIPLOMA OR EQUIVALENCY, college transcripts, ETC.) to verify meeting these Minimum Qualifications.
THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION VALUES THE SERVICE VETERANS AND THEIR FAMILY MEMBERS HAVE GIVEN TO OUR COUNTRY AND SUPPORTS THE HIRING OF RETURNING SERVICE MEMBERS AND MILITARY SPOUSES. If you are a preference-eligible applicant who receives notice of a hiring decision and believe that you were not afforded employment preference in accordance with applicable Florida law and regulation, you may file a written complaint within 60 calendar days from the date you receive the notice, requesting an investigation to the Florida Department of Veterans’ Affairs, Division of Benefits and Assistance, 9500 Bay Pines Boulevard, Room 214, St. Petersburg, Florida 33708.
The State of Florida is an Equal Opportunity Employer/Affirmative Action Employer, and does not tolerate discrimination or violence in the workplace.
Candidates requiring a reasonable accommodation, as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act, must notify the agency hiring authority and/or People First Service Center (1-866-663-4735). Notification to the hiring authority must be made in advance to allow sufficient time to provide the accommodation.
The State of Florida supports a Drug-Free workplace. All employees are subject to reasonable suspicion drug testing in accordance with Section 112.0455, F.S., Drug-Free Workplace Act.
VETERANS PREFERENCE. Pursuant to Chapter 295, Florida Statutes, candidates eligible for Veterans Preference will receive preference in employment for Career Service vacancies and are encouraged to apply.  Candidates claiming Veterans Preference must attach supporting documentation with each submission that includes character of service (for example, DD Form 214 Member Copy #4) along with any other documentation as required by Rule 55A-7, Florida Administrative Code.  Veterans Preference documentation requirements are available by clicking here .  All documentation is due by the close of the vacancy announcement.