Senior Transport Planner - Transport Policy

West Sussex County Council; Chichester; Hybrid; GBP 41,000 - 49,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Local government pension scheme

27–30 days holiday (plus buy extra)

Flexible working options

Professional accreditation support

Training and development opportunities

CIHT membership

Staff discounts and wellbeing benefits

Job summary

West Sussex County Council is seeking a Senior Transport Planner to shape transport policies guiding development and sustainable growth. You will influence Local Plans, promote climate action, and deliver infrastructure through evidence-based planning.

You will lead strategic projects, analyse complex data, and collaborate with planners, developers and communities to realise the West Sussex Transport Plan objectives.

Qualifications

• Strong analytical skills to interpret evidence and link transport with land use.
• Excellent communication to explain policy matters clearly.
• Experience in preparing reports, policy documents and briefing papers.

Responsibilities

• Develop transport policies influencing planning decisions and land use integration.
• Lead strategic transport initiatives addressing climate change and economic growth.
• Provide specialised transport planning advice for Local Plans and proposals.
• Identify innovative solutions including active travel networks and bus priority.
• Prepare business cases and funding applications for transport infrastructure.
• Use transport planning tools to analyze issues and evaluate policy options.
• Collaborate with communities and partners to deliver the West Sussex Transport Plan.

Skills

Analytical skills

Communication skills

Report writing

Project management

Independent work

Education

Degree in Transport Planning

Chartered Transport Planning Professional

Postgraduate qualification in Transport Planning

Tools

Transport models

Geographic Information Systems

Job description

About The Job

Do you want to take the next step in your transport planning career by shaping the policies that influence how places grow, how people travel and how communities thrive?

If you're motivated by problem-solving, evidence based planning and meaningful impact, we'd love to hear from you.

About The Job

Salary: £41,177 to £48,738 per annum.

Working Pattern: Full time, 37 hours per week

Location: Hybrid working, requirement to be in Chichester at least once per week.

As a Senior Transport Planner, you will play a key role in shaping transport policies that guide development throughout West Sussex. You will help ensure that planning decisions promote sustainable growth, address climate change, enhance connectivity, and deliver appropriate infrastructure in a timely and effective manner.

You will be involved in a variety of strategic highways and transport projects, identifying solutions to support climate initiatives, economic performance, and population growth.

Your work will have a direct impact on Local Plans, significant development proposals, and delivery of long-term transport strategies.

Experience and Skills

What you'll be doing:

• Developing transport policies that influence planning decisions and integrate sustainable transport within land use strategies.
• Leading strategic transport initiatives to address climate change, support economic growth, and accommodate demographic shifts.
• Providing specialised transport planning advice to inform Local Plans and development proposals.
• Identifying innovative solutions, including active travel networks and bus priority measures.
• Preparing business cases and funding applications to secure investment in transport infrastructure.
• Utilising transport planning tools to analyse issues and evaluate policy-based solutions.
• Collaborating with communities and partners to realise the objectives outlined in the West Sussex Transport Plan.

What you'll bring:

• Strong analytical skills to interpret complex evidence and establish connections between transport, land use, and development issues.
• Confidence in working independently, prioritising tasks effectively, and exercising sound judgement.
• Excellent communication skills, capable of clearly explaining sensitive or technical policy matters.
• Ability to develop credible relationships with planners, developers, councillors, and community organisations.
• Experience in preparing comprehensive reports, policy documents, and briefing papers.
• Project management skills suitable for small-scale projects and policy initiatives.

What we are looking for:

• Degree (or equivalent qualification of experience) in Transport Planning, Town Planning or a related discipline appropriate to the role.
• Relevant chartered status, e.g. Chartered Transport Planning Professional, and professional membership e.g. Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation.
• Postgraduate qualification in Transport Planning, Town Planning or a related discipline - Desirable
• Advanced theoretical and procedural knowledge in an appropriate specialist work area.
• Knowledge of external funding sources and their use to fund transport schemes.
• Knowledge of the customer base to support the development of transport policy and/or improvements.
• Knowledge of technical tools (e.g. transport models, Geographical Information Systems) used in transport planning.
• Significant experience in an appropriate specialist work area.
• Substantial experience in project delivery and budget management.

This is a career grade post that provides an opportunity for career progression from Grade 10 to 11, subject to demonstrating the relevant competencies through regular performance conversations. Training and development opportunities will be supported, and the successful candidate will be encouraged to pursue professional accreditation from a relevant body such as the Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation.

About us

Planning Services is made up of seven teams and Transport Planning and Policy sits within this. The service is also part of the wider Highways, Transport and Planning Directorate. The overall aims of Planning Services are to ensure that decisions made about planning and development make a positive difference to the economy, people and places of West Sussex, and to enable the delivery of the right infrastructure, in the right place, at the right time.

Working for us

As well as adding real value to our service users and our communities, as an employer we recognise our employees are central in being able to achieve this. To recognise this we want to help support your development and provide a great place to work ensuring you can fulfil your full potential, have access to a range of benefits including:

• an excellent local government pension scheme
• generous holiday entitlement of 27-30 days (plus opportunity to buy additional leave)
• a range of flexible working options, depending on your job role
• maternity, paternity, dependency and adoption leave
• volunteering opportunities
• training and development opportunities, including coaching and mentoring
• registration to one relevant professional institution (e.g. CIHT)
• a range of discounts giving our staff access to hundreds of offers; groceries, travel, cinema tickets, days out, leisure activities, high street retailers and the opportunity to save over £1,000 a year through our West Sussex Choices benefits platform (see ourStaff discounts page if you are a business looking to offer a discount)
• health and wellbeing benefits including access to our Employee Assistance Programme, Mental Health First Aiders and Voluntary Health Cash Plans

For a full list this can be found at our Rewards and Benefits page.

Further Information

The reference number for this role is EIE01571

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. This post is subject to 3 years referencing and a health check.

Equity, inclusion and accessibility is very important to West Sussex County Council. We welcome and encourage applications from everyone, as this helps us build a diverse and talented workforce, that reflects the communities we serve. We ensure our approach to recruitment is flexible and supportive to enable all applicants to be at their best and to ensure they have the best possible chance of success.

We operate a guaranteed interview scheme for applicants that have a disability, are a veteran or are a care leaver. More information can be found on our application help page.