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The differences between transportation planners and urban planners can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a transportation planner and an urban planner. Additionally, a transportation planner has an average salary of $68,983, which is higher than the $65,316 average annual salary of an urban planner.
The top three skills for a transportation planner include customer service, GIS and project management. The most important skills for an urban planner are GIS, infrastructure, and visualization.
| Transportation Planner | Urban Planner | |
| Yearly salary | $68,983 | $65,316 |
| Hourly rate | $33.16 | $31.40 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 21,425 | 13,883 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A transportation planner takes responsibility for developing transportation strategies encompassing transportation needs. Transportation planners work along with government agencies for the selection and development of plans organizing mass transit. They communicate through social media in written, visual, or oral forms. It is part of their duty to design leaflets and questionnaires to communicate and receive feedback from the public. They also take part in meetings more often for note-taking, scheduling, and attendance. They need to be well-versed in algebra, geometry, calculus, and arithmetic.
An urban planner is responsible for evaluating land use and condition and providing comprehensive plans and programs that would be beneficial for the entire community. Urban planners' tasks also cover conducting field investigations and collect environmental studies, performing market research and creating proposals for approval of the officials, reviewing recommendations and addressing issues which concern the land and resources, and strategizing comprehensive area plans. An urban planner must consider the community's best interest that would promote growth and development.
Transportation planners and urban planners have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Transportation Planner | Urban Planner | |
| Average salary | $68,983 | $65,316 |
| Salary range | Between $50,000 And $93,000 | Between $47,000 And $89,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | Mapbox |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Construction |
There are a few differences between a transportation planner and an urban planner in terms of educational background:
| Transportation Planner | Urban Planner | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Most common major | Business | Urban Planning |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between transportation planners' and urban planners' demographics:
| Transportation Planner | Urban Planner | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 60.6% Female, 39.4% | Male, 66.6% Female, 33.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.8% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.7% Asian, 9.5% White, 67.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% | Black or African American, 4.6% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.3% Asian, 9.3% White, 67.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% |
| LGBT Percentage | 13% | 13% |