What does a traffic engineer do?
The Traffic Engineer is responsible for the design of roadways that provide free traffic flow. In city planning, congested roads are one of the crucial problems that need solving. The Traffic Engineer works with various agencies to gather information to develop and design a customized road network that will decongest roads and prevent bottlenecks. Traffic Engineers are essential personnel, even in building suburban subdivisions and housing projects. A Traffic Engineer's tasks are to conduct assessments of existing road networks and provide suggestions for improving traffic flow and recommend design modifications and alterations
Traffic engineer responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real traffic engineer resumes:
- Manage Jenkins security by providing specific access to authorize developers/testers using project base matrix authorization strategy.
- Investigate and troubleshoot all issues in manufacturing.
- Integrate the program with packet capturer APIs from PCAP.
- Perform the traffic study analysis in SYNCHRO and develop the traffic report.
- Develop GIS map that incorporate all city traffic signals and channalization plans.
- Maintain and update records in provisioning systems M6 MetaSolv to include jeopardy and status remarks.
- Work with Operationdepartment to monitor KPI, perform test and troubleshoot the entire IP network.
- Utilize graphic, traffic simulation (Syncrho and VISSIM), and mapping software for reports.
- Analyze the existing and future traffic conditions at the study intersections and corridors using Synchro software program.
- Design, deploy and support SONET transport networks (OC3 - OC192) carrying core data, voice and video traffic.
- Provide technical support and expertise during new re-route processes to observe, troubleshoot, and document any process or scale-up issues.
- Develop and deliver executive presentations on SONET contract deployment status.
- Prepare signal plans for intersections as part of corridor highway rehabilitation.
- Dial backup point-to-point configuration of links to support primary frame-relay interconnectivity.
- Create system support documentation including instructional procedures, provisioning guidelines, test plans, problem documentation and functional process flows.
Traffic engineer skills and personality traits
We calculated that 9% of Traffic Engineers are proficient in HCS, Traffic Operations, and Signal Timing. They’re also known for soft skills such as Leadership skills, Organizational skills, and Speaking skills.
We break down the percentage of Traffic Engineers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- HCS, 9%
Performed existing and future capacity analysis using highway capacity software (HCS 2000) for the project.
- Traffic Operations, 7%
Developed engineering service portfolio consisting of traffic operations, engineering analysis, design, review, inspection and consulting services.
- Signal Timing, 6%
Combined field observations with sensor data analysis to propose better signal timing efficiency and adaptability for the next project phase.
- Traffic Analysis, 5%
Conducted traffic analysis, warrant analysis and project reviews.
- Project Management, 5%
Generated project management schedules using Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Project software.
- Transportation Planning, 4%
Draft Transportation Planning Maps and Standard County Civil Plans & Details.
Common skills that a traffic engineer uses to do their job include "hcs," "traffic operations," and "signal timing." You can find details on the most important traffic engineer responsibilities below.
Organizational skills. Another essential skill to perform traffic engineer duties is organizational skills. Traffic engineers responsibilities require that "civil engineers often oversee several projects at the same time and must be able to allocate resources effectively." Traffic engineers also use organizational skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "instituted process improvements and collaborative organizational strategies through the atlassian suite (jira, confluence, etc. )"
Problem-solving skills. Another crucial skill for a traffic engineer to carry out their responsibilities is "problem-solving skills." A big part of what traffic engineers relies on this skill, since "civil engineers may encounter problems during each stage of their work." How this skill relates to traffic engineer duties can be seen in an example from a traffic engineer resume snippet: "developed solutions for trip generation and assignment distributions. "
Math skills. Another skill commonly found on traffic engineer job descriptions is "math skills." It can come up quite often in traffic engineer duties, since "civil engineers use calculus, trigonometry, and other mathematics for analysis, design, and troubleshooting." Here's an example from a resume of how this skill fits into day-to-day traffic engineer responsibilities: "verify mathematical calculations and unit usage involved on daily inspection reports and in final documentation of project quantities. "
The three companies that hire the most traffic engineers are:
- Wsp USA Buildings Inc.49 traffic engineers jobs
- AECOM27 traffic engineers jobs
- HDR25 traffic engineers jobs
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Compare different traffic engineers
Traffic engineer vs. Transportation planning engineer
A structures engineer works in designing, planning, and overseeing the development of the latest buildings and bridges or modifications and extensions to an existing property or other structures. They are mainly concerned with the safety and capability of the structure to withstand the elements to which they will be exposed--also improving the existing building structural integrity. Part of the task is inspecting properties regarding the conditions/foundation and checking work undertaken by contractors. The job is very similarly related to a civil engineer.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, traffic engineer responsibilities require skills like "hcs," "traffic operations," "signal timing," and "project management." Meanwhile a typical transportation planning engineer has skills in areas such as "ip," "sonet," "dcs," and "dacs." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Transportation planning engineers tend to reach similar levels of education than traffic engineers. In fact, transportation planning engineers are 3.3% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 1.3% more likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Traffic engineer vs. Transportation design engineer
A civil engineer designs and supervises the construction of large-scale public works projects such as buildings, roads, tunnels, highways, airports, bridges, dams, and other substantial infrastructure. Most civil engineers work in the private industry, but some work for a government organization. Their output is almost everywhere. Many of them specialize in a specific project or practice a target profession such as in transportation, structural engineering, or geotechnical engineering. They oftentimes work at project sites, as they monitor the ongoing construction.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that traffic engineer responsibilities requires skills like "hcs," "traffic operations," "signal timing," and "traffic analysis." But a transportation design engineer might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "civil 3d," "inroads," "aided design," and "business development."
Transportation design engineers may earn a lower salary than traffic engineers, but transportation design engineers earn the most pay in the construction industry with an average salary of $76,122. On the other hand, traffic engineers receive higher pay in the retail industry, where they earn an average salary of $91,726.In general, transportation design engineers achieve similar levels of education than traffic engineers. They're 2.5% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 1.3% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Traffic engineer vs. Structures engineer
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a traffic engineer is likely to be skilled in "hcs," "traffic operations," "signal timing," and "traffic analysis," while a typical structures engineer is skilled in "structural analysis," "revit," "risa," and "aci."
Structures engineers make a very good living in the manufacturing industry with an average annual salary of $81,360. On the other hand, traffic engineers are paid the highest salary in the retail industry, with average annual pay of $91,726.structures engineers typically earn similar educational levels compared to traffic engineers. Specifically, they're 2.4% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 1.6% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Traffic engineer vs. Civil engineer
Types of traffic engineer
Updated January 8, 2025
