Course description
Designed for graduates and professionals, this course updates your skills and improves your career prospects. If you are a newly qualified graduate, you are likely to have a degree in one or more of the following • planning • urban studies • geography • business studies • civil engineering • surveying.
The course also meets the needs of practising professionals with an interest in present government initiatives. These could be sustainable transport, co-ordination of local travel plans or rural and urban transport issues.
It offers a thorough understanding of the main viewpoints of
• present-day transport policy
• the role of transport in society
• the social, economic and environmental dimensions of transport planning and management
You apply the principles of strategic management, transport law and human resource management to these areas of professional practice.
The course covers government initiatives such as regional transport strategies, local transport plans and workplace travel plans.
Associated careers
The transport profession is changing rapidly and creating a demand for transport professionals who can develop and manage systems that balance environmental, social and economic factors in a complex legal framework.
Local authorities and consultancies employ most transport planners. Local authority planning departments produce transport plans that are acceptable to local people and developers and conform to local and national guidelines. They assess the impact of other developments such as housing projects on transport. They are also involved in providing other services, such as bus services or cycle routes, and consultation with transport providers.
Consultancies provide travel plans for a wide range of clients, from schools and hospitals to developers and industrial firms. They use simulation models to predict the effects of different schemes. Some areas of their work can be more technical than that of local authority departments.
Course content
Level one modules
• economy, society and politics • geographical information systems (GIS) and transport • global perspectives on regeneration • professional management skills
Level two modules
• strategic land use and transport planning • financial policy and management • transport appraisal
Level three modules
• applied research methods • dissertation
