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Transportation engineer salary
Average transportation engineer salary
$68,945
Average Transportation Engineer Salary
The average salary for a transportation engineer is approximately $68,945 annually, equating to about $33 per hour. Salaries can differ significantly based on various factors including geographic location, years of experience, and the specific sector within the transportation industry.
Salary by Experience Level
Entry-level transportation engineers typically start at lower salary ranges, gaining experience and skills that can lead to higher compensation. Professionals with over ten years of experience can command much higher wages.
Top Paying States
Transportation engineers in states like California, Texas, and Virginia tend to earn more due to higher demand and cost of living. For instance, the average salary in California may exceed $80,000, reflecting the state’s investment in infrastructure projects.
Job Opportunities
To find roles that suit your qualifications, utilize job search platforms such as Zippia. With numerous listings tailored to transportation engineers, you can locate positions that offer competitive salaries and benefits.
Let Zippia find your next transportation engineer job
Let Zippia find your next transportation engineer job
Where can a Transportation Engineer earn more?
Transportation engineer salaries by experience level
Transportation engineer salary estimates from across the web
Average transportation engineer salary by state
The average transportation engineer salary in California, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania are the highest in the U.S. The lowest average transportation engineer salary states are Michigan, Tennessee, and South Carolina.
- State view
- County view
Highest paying states for transportation engineers
| Rank | State | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | $89,524 | $43.04 |
| 2 | Oregon | $77,018 | $37.03 |
| 3 | Vermont | $75,412 | $36.26 |
| 4 | Pennsylvania | $78,985 | $37.97 |
| 5 | West Virginia | $69,737 | $33.53 |
| 6 | Minnesota | $75,113 | $36.11 |
| 7 | Nebraska | $70,567 | $33.93 |
| 8 | New Jersey | $81,118 | $39.00 |
| 9 | Massachusetts | $76,114 | $36.59 |
| 10 | Connecticut | $74,888 | $36.00 |
| 11 | Nevada | $71,840 | $34.54 |
| 12 | Wyoming | $67,885 | $32.64 |
| 13 | Colorado | $70,158 | $33.73 |
| 14 | New York | $74,912 | $36.02 |
| 15 | District of Columbia | $70,421 | $33.86 |
| 16 | Alaska | $69,854 | $33.58 |
| 17 | Washington | $69,926 | $33.62 |
| 18 | North Dakota | $66,659 | $32.05 |
| 19 | Kansas | $69,903 | $33.61 |
| 20 | Illinois | $69,245 | $33.29 |
| 21 | Virginia | $68,876 | $33.11 |
| 22 | Kentucky | $69,390 | $33.36 |
| 23 | Missouri | $70,340 | $33.82 |
| 24 | New Mexico | $68,916 | $33.13 |
| 25 | Oklahoma | $68,480 | $32.92 |
| 26 | Arizona | $65,733 | $31.60 |
| 27 | Montana | $65,047 | $31.27 |
| 28 | Delaware | $67,311 | $32.36 |
| 29 | South Dakota | $65,369 | $31.43 |
| 30 | Arkansas | $67,097 | $32.26 |
| 31 | North Carolina | $65,305 | $31.40 |
| 32 | Idaho | $64,962 | $31.23 |
| 33 | Ohio | $65,136 | $31.32 |
| 34 | Alabama | $63,787 | $30.67 |
| 35 | Texas | $64,584 | $31.05 |
| 36 | New Hampshire | $67,682 | $32.54 |
| 37 | Iowa | $63,999 | $30.77 |
| 38 | Wisconsin | $65,048 | $31.27 |
| 39 | Louisiana | $64,913 | $31.21 |
| 40 | Rhode Island | $66,586 | $32.01 |
| 41 | Maine | $63,190 | $30.38 |
| 42 | Florida | $63,886 | $30.71 |
| 43 | Indiana | $63,009 | $30.29 |
| 44 | Michigan | $61,305 | $29.47 |
| 45 | Utah | $62,435 | $30.02 |
| 46 | Maryland | $62,638 | $30.11 |
| 47 | Hawaii | $56,621 | $27.22 |
| 48 | Georgia | $60,131 | $28.91 |
| 49 | Tennessee | $60,603 | $29.14 |
| 50 | Mississippi | $59,951 | $28.82 |
| 51 | South Carolina | $60,143 | $28.91 |
Highest paying cities for transportation engineers
The highest-paying cities for transportation engineers are San Francisco, CA, Portland, OR, and Boston, MA.
| Rank | City | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco, CA | $93,890 | $45.14 |
| 2 | Portland, OR | $76,832 | $36.94 |
| 3 | Boston, MA | $76,178 | $36.62 |
| 4 | Babylon, NY | $75,054 | $36.08 |
| 5 | Las Vegas, NV | $71,362 | $34.31 |
| 6 | Olympia, WA | $70,544 | $33.92 |
| 7 | Washington, DC | $70,450 | $33.87 |
| 8 | Saint Louis, MO | $70,272 | $33.78 |
| 9 | Littleton, CO | $70,213 | $33.76 |
| 10 | Chicago, IL | $69,329 | $33.33 |
| 11 | Arlington, VA | $69,177 | $33.26 |
| 12 | Phoenix, AZ | $65,882 | $31.67 |
| 13 | Tallahassee, FL | $65,416 | $31.45 |
| 14 | Raleigh, NC | $65,407 | $31.45 |
| 15 | Columbus, OH | $64,980 | $31.24 |
| 16 | Baton Rouge, LA | $64,946 | $31.22 |
| 17 | Dallas, TX | $64,784 | $31.15 |
| 18 | Billings, MT | $64,481 | $31.00 |
| 19 | Ames, IA | $63,967 | $30.75 |
| 20 | Indianapolis, IN | $63,045 | $30.31 |
Transportation engineer salary details
A transportation engineer's salary ranges from $51,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $91,000 at the 90th percentile.
What is a transportation engineer's salary?
| Percentile | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90th Percentile | $91,000 | $7,583 | $44 |
| 75th Percentile | $80,000 | $6,667 | $38 |
| Average | $68,945 | $5,745 | $33 |
| 25th Percentile | $59,000 | $4,917 | $28 |
| 10th Percentile | $51,000 | $4,250 | $25 |
Highest paying transportation engineer jobs
The highest paying types of transportation engineers are engineer, traffic engineer, and site engineer.
| Job title | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Engineer | $92,076 | $7,673 | $44.27 | 618,207 |
| Structures Engineer | $73,391 | $6,116 | $35.28 | 20,778 |
| Civil Engineer | $70,950 | $5,912 | $34.11 | 26,803 |
| Site Engineer | $75,719 | $6,310 | $36.40 | 42,333 |
| Traffic Engineer | $87,079 | $7,257 | $41.86 | 5,561 |
Top companies hiring transportation engineers now:
Which companies pay transportation engineers the most?
Transportation engineer salaries at Google and Bon-Ton are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average transportation engineer salary at companies like Ford Motor and Booz Allen Hamilton are highly competitive.
| Rank | Company | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $124,868 | $60.03 | |
| 2 | Bon-Ton | $102,043 | $49.06 |
| 3 | Ford Motor | $92,995 | $44.71 |
| 4 | Booz Allen Hamilton | $90,322 | $43.42 |
| 5 | Amazon | $88,563 | $42.58 |
| 6 | Vertex | $82,690 | $39.75 |
| 7 | Arvig | $81,269 | $39.07 |
| 8 | McKesson | $80,875 | $38.88 |
| 9 | DISH Network | $80,664 | $38.78 |
| 10 | T-Mobile | $80,165 | $38.54 |
| 11 | Interstate Batteries | $79,937 | $38.43 |
| 12 | Regions Bank | $78,845 | $37.91 |
| 13 | Iteris | $78,338 | $37.66 |
| 14 | CDM Smith | $78,086 | $37.54 |
| 15 | City Of Alexandria | $78,009 | $37.50 |
| 16 | RS&H | $77,655 | $37.33 |
| 17 | Spectrum | $77,197 | $37.11 |
| 18 | Florida International University | $76,934 | $36.99 |
| 19 | Parsons | $76,923 | $36.98 |
| 20 | ICF | $76,796 | $36.92 |
Wage gap by gender, race and education
Transportation engineer salary trends
The average transportation engineer salary has risen by $8,235 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average transportation engineer earned $60,710 annually, but today, they earn $68,945 a year. That works out to a 6% change in pay for transportation engineers over the last decade.
Compare transportation engineer salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.
Average transportation engineer salary over time
Compare transportation engineer salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.
Transportation engineer salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $68,900 | $33.15 | +1.7% |
| 2025 | $67,800 | $32.58 | +0.5% |
| 2024 | $67,400 | $32.42 | +2.2% |
| 2023 | $66,000 | $31.72 | +1.5% |
| 2022 | $65,000 | $31.26 | +1.6% |
Recently added transportation engineer salaries
| Company | Job | Location | Date added | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| State of Maine | Assistant Transportation Engineer-Bridge Construction) | Bangor, ME | 06/29/2025 | $54,413 |
| Stonefield Engineering & Design-Parent Account | Experienced Traffic/Transportation Engineer | New York, NY | 06/29/2025 | $85,000 |
| Fa009 | Transportation Engineer II, III or IV | Houston, TX | 06/29/2025 | $76,530 |
| Tandmassociates | Senior Transportation Engineer | Middletown, NJ | 06/29/2025 | $91,000 |
| Dasstateoh | Transportation Engineer (Design) | Chillicothe, OH | 06/29/2025 | $78,325 |
| Get It Recruit-Transportation | Transportation Engineer-Remote | WFH | Indianapolis, IN | 06/29/2025 | $75,000 |
| Parsons | Transportation/Roadway Engineer | Chicago, IL | 06/28/2025 | $72,900 |
| Teksystems | Transport Engineer III | Annapolis, MD | 06/28/2025 | $93,915 |
| City of State College, Pa | Transportation Engineer | State College, PA | 06/28/2025 | $95,680 |
| Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc. | SR. Transportation Engineer/Planner | San Diego, CA | 06/28/2025 | $110,000 |
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