How I became a transport planner
My name is Kieran Newlove and on the 17th of January 2022 I joined Local Transport Projects (LTP) in Beverley initially as an intern via the University of Hull internship programme before becoming a permanent member of the team in April 2022 as a Graduate Transport Planner.
Having graduated from University of Hull in July 2020 I was keen to start a career in the transport sector having studied several modules at University that focused on the urban environment and the role that transport infrastructure and transport planning plays in the development of urban areas.
However, having graduated during the Covid-19 pandemic it was difficult to find a graduate opportunity in the sector. It wasn’t until a year later that I received an email from the University of Hull’s Student Futures Team regarding an internship opportunity with Local Transport Projects in Beverley and I applied immediately.
Following my 3-month internship the company decided to make role permanent and I’ve now been working at LTP for just over 8 months.
The work I do
The majority of my work at Local Transport Projects comes under the remit of the ‘Transport Planning and Development’ team.
Straight from the get-go I was working on reports such as Transport Assessments, Transport Statements and Travel Plans, which includes assessing the road safety and the projected trip generation of proposed developments; this showed the level of trust the company placed in me to complete projects to a professional level.
Over the past few months, I have started to work more with AutoCAD, looking at visibility splays and Swept Path Analysis (SPA) for site access junctions and also learning more about junction modelling and trip distribution, although what I’ve encountered so far is only the tip of the iceberg!
What skills have I learnt?
Getting the chance to learn on the job from day one has been invaluable, as this first hand experience has allowed me to learn a great deal and develop my knowledge of the transport sector.
Furthermore, having a great team of experienced colleagues has proved to be extremely helpful in allowing to continuously improve my work and also in getting acquainted with new software such as TRICS, MapInfo or AutoCAD.
Challenges faced
Having started at LTP with very little prior knowledge of the transport industry it was quite challenging getting familiarised with the information and guidance associated with the role, especially given the fact that I had spent much of the previous year working part-time in a completely unrelated role due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Each project provides its own set of unique challenges often revolving around trip generation projections, highways safety and site access and parking arrangements. These usually include working to tight deadlines to ensure that clients receive the work they need on time.
However, I feel this type of variety in our work is a good thing, working on projects all over the UK ranging from jobs in Scotland and Wales to London and even the Isle of Man.
This variety prevents the job from becoming stale and exposes me to areas of the UK which I had previously had no idea about. Getting the opportunity to go out on site and visit the locations first hand is actually really fun and it can break up the office work nicely.
Whilst Google Earth or Google Maps are indispensable tools in our job there is no substitute for site work, especially when you find that in person the site can often be very different from what is shown on Google!
What do I do in my free time?
Outside of work my main hobby is probably football, whether that be playing on Sundays, at 5-a-side, or watching the beautiful game.
I’ve also recently starting to pick up golf, although most of my time has been spent practicing at the driving range as I haven’t had the chance to get out on the course yet, although that is probably for the best at the moment! Outside of playing sports you’ll most likely find me down at my local, enjoying a pint of Guinness and a game of pool.
