Planning Engineer - Transportation

AECOM Middle East Ltd; Dubai; On-site; AED 180,000 - 250,000; Full time

Job summary

AECOM Middle East Ltd in Dubai is seeking a skilled Planning Engineer for major transportation projects. The role involves managing schedules with Primavera P6 while ensuring compliance with RTA specifications and monitoring project progress.

The ideal candidate will have 7-12 years of experience in planning engineering, with significant UAE experience preferred. We offer career growth opportunities in a dynamic global infrastructure consulting environment.

Qualifications

• 7-12 years of experience in planning engineering, scheduling, or project controls.
• Minimum 3-5 years of UAE experience preferred.
• Professional Engineering certification is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Develop, review, and maintain detailed baseline schedules using Primavera P6.
• Monitor project progress against approved baselines and identify schedule risks.
• Prepare and evaluate extension of time claims and planning narratives.

Skills

Primavera P6

Microsoft Project

Transportation planning

Project controls

Infrastructure scheduling

Education

Bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering or a related discipline

Tools

Baseline schedules

Recovery programs

Critical path analysis

Job description

Planning Engineer - Transportation

Location: Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Industry: Civil Engineering

Function: Project-Program Management

Experience: 7-12 years

Job Type: Full-time

Role Overview

Planning Engineer - Transportation in Dubai, United Arab Emirates is a specialized Civil Engineering role for an experienced planning professional who can manage Primavera P6 schedules, RTA approval requirements, baseline programs, recovery plans, delay analysis, and project controls reporting for major transportation and infrastructure projects. This opportunity is well suited for a planning engineer with UAE project experience, strong knowledge of Dubai regulations, and the ability to coordinate schedules across construction, procurement, design, commercial, and stakeholder teams.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop, review, and maintain detailed baseline schedules, recovery programs, revised schedules, master schedules, and look‑ahead programs using Primavera P6 or equivalent planning software.
• Ensure project programs comply with RTA specifications, standard work breakdown structures, contractual requirements, phasing plans, and planning procedures.
• Monitor project progress against approved baselines and identify delays, critical path impacts, schedule risks, bottlenecks, and areas requiring corrective action.
• Perform schedule risk analysis, delay analysis, and time impact analysis in accordance with contract requirements and project controls standards.
• Coordinate planning activities linked to RTA approval procedures, interim milestones, traffic staging, sectional handovers, NOCs, permits, and traffic diversion approvals.
• Review contractors' programs, planning submissions, method statements, progress updates, and supporting documents against contractual milestones and key performance indicators.
• Prepare weekly and monthly progress reports, planning dashboards, schedule narratives, progress curves, and stakeholder updates in coordination with project teams.
• Prepare and evaluate extension of time claims by developing planning narratives, reviewing delay evidence, and substantiating schedule impacts.
• Develop recovery and mitigation plans for delayed activities and support teams in bringing critical workstreams back in line with approved schedules.
• Track procurement activities, long‑lead items, authority approvals, permits, technical deliverables, and other schedule‑sensitive project requirements.
• Conduct weekly and monthly planning meetings, record schedule actions, follow up on pending items, and support coordination between internal and external stakeholders.
• Coordinate with construction, procurement, design, commercial, project controls, and management teams to align schedule logic with resources, deliverables, and site priorities.
• Provide planning inputs to the Project Manager to support decision‑making, progress control, risk management, and corrective action planning.
• Maintain organized planning records, baseline approvals, revised program submissions, EOT documentation, meeting records, progress data, and schedule evidence.
• Support cross‑functional teams by improving planning frameworks, collaboration processes, and reporting discipline across assigned transportation projects.
• Lead planning coordination where required and guide junior team members on scheduling standards, reporting methods, and project controls procedures.

Ideal Profile

• Bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering or a related discipline.
• 7-12 years of experience in planning engineering, scheduling, or project controls.
• Minimum 3-5 years of UAE experience is preferred.
• Professional Engineering certification is preferred.
• Experience on transportation, roads, bridges, infrastructure, or RTA-related projects will be highly valuable.
• Strong proficiency in Primavera P6 and Microsoft Project.
• Good knowledge of baseline schedules, recovery programs, revised schedules, WBS structures, critical path analysis, and schedule control.
• Strong understanding of RTA approval processes, Dubai regulations, authority permits, NOCs, traffic diversion approvals, and local infrastructure project requirements.
• Ability to review contractor schedules, planning submissions, method statements, phasing plans, and project performance data.
• Practical experience preparing and evaluating extension of time claims, delay narratives, time impact analysis, and supporting planning evidence.
• Strong analytical and problem‑solving skills with attention to detail and the ability to identify schedule risks early.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills for planning meetings, stakeholder coordination, reporting, and project leadership support.
• Able to work effectively in a fast‑paced, collaborative environment while managing multiple planning priorities.
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to support cross‑functional teams and maintain accurate project controls documentation.

Skills Set

• Primavera P6
• Microsoft Project
• Transportation planning
• Project controls
• Infrastructure scheduling
• RTA specifications
• Dubai regulations
• Work breakdown structure
• Baseline schedules
• Recovery programs
• Revised programs
• Master schedules
• Look‑ahead programs
• Critical path analysis
• Schedule risk analysis
• Delay analysis
• Time impact analysis
• Extension of Time claims
• EOT evaluation
• Planning narratives
• Progress reporting
• Weekly reports
• Monthly reports
• Traffic staging
• Sectional handovers
• NOC coordination
• Permit tracking
• Traffic diversion approvals
• Procurement tracking
• Long‑lead item tracking
• Contractor program review
• Method statement review
• KPI monitoring
• Stakeholder coordination
• Project management support

Why Join Us

This role gives an experienced Planning Engineer the opportunity to support major transportation and infrastructure projects in Dubai, where precise scheduling, RTA coordination, and strong project controls directly influence delivery success. The position offers exposure to complex transport programs, authority‑driven planning processes, multidisciplinary teams, and structured career development within a global infrastructure consulting environment. It is a strong career move for a planning professional who wants to grow in high‑demand transportation project management and project controls work across the UAE.

About the Company

AECOM is a global infrastructure consulting firm delivering planning, engineering, transportation, environment, water, buildings, program management, and construction management services. In Dubai and across the Middle East, AECOM supports public and private sector clients with technical expertise, sustainable infrastructure solutions, and full project lifecycle support from planning and design through delivery, project controls, and close‑out.