Exam Code: 8TR49
Department: Department of Transportation (Caltrans)
Exam Type: Departmental, Open Non-Promotional 
Bulletin Date: 07/23/2018
Final Filing Date: Continuous (cut-off dates for 2024: January 31, February 29, March 31, April 30, May 31, June 30, July 31, August 31, September 30, October 31, November 30, December 31)
Monthly Salary: $8,180.00 - $10,164.00

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INTRODUCTION
Caltrans is pleased to announce the posting of the Senior Transportation Planner examination. Employment from this examination may be offered in all Districts and Sacramento County.

Any information submitted in your examination effort WILL NOT BE FORWARDED or be included in the determination of your qualifications for a position.

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EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY
Caltrans is an equal opportunity employer to all, regardless of age, ancestry, color, disability (mental and physical), exercising the right to family care and medical leave, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, military or veteran status, national origin, political affiliation, race, religious creed, sex (includes pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding and related medical conditions), and sexual orientation.

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DRUG FREE STATEMENT
It is an objective of the State of California to achieve a drug-free work place. All applicants will be expected to behave in accordance with this objective, as the use of illegal drugs is inconsistent with the law of the State, the rules governing civil service, and the special trust placed in public servants.

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WHO SHOULD APPLY
Candidates who meet the minimum qualifications as stated below may apply for this examination.

Once you have list eligibility, you may not reapply for twelve (12) months from your eligibility date. Candidates that are unsuccessful in the examination must wait six (6) months from the testing date before reapplying to take the examination.

All applicants must meet the education and/or experience requirements as stated on this exam bulletin to be accepted into the examination. Part-time or full-time jobs, regardless of whether paid or volunteer positions, and inside or outside California state service will count toward experience.

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FILING INSTRUCTIONS
Candidates are required to submit 1) STD 678 State Application and 2) Training and Experience Evaluation

Examinations must be received or postmarked no later than the cut-off date. Dates printed on Mobile Bar Codes, such as the Quick Response (QR) Codes available at the USPS, are not considered Postmark dates for the purpose of determining timely filing of an examination. Faxed or E-mailed examinations will NOT be accepted.

File by Mail

Attention: Caltrans Examination Services (MS 86)
P.O. Box 168036, Sacramento, CA 95816-8036

File in Person

Attention: Caltrans Examination Services (MS 86)
1727 30TH Street, 1st Floor, Sacramento, CA 95816-8036

*Any information submitted in your examination effort WILL NOT BE FORWARDED or be included in the determination of your qualifications for a position.

**Candidates are responsible for obtaining proof of mailing or submission of their examination to Exam Services.

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POSITION STATEMENT
This is the full supervisory level. Under general direction, (1) directs the work of a Headquarters branch; or (2) has charge of a district branch or unit including project level activities and regional level analysis; or (3) acts as a technical expert performing the most difficult and complex work which is either critical to the Department's basic mission or of statewide significance.

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REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMITTANCE TO THE EXAMINATION
All applicants must meet the education and/or experience requirements for this examination by the cut-off date. By submitting your qualifications in this examination, you indicate that you read, understand, and possess the minimum qualifications required, and that the information provided is true and complete to the best of your knowledge.

NOTE: Qualifying experience may be combined on a proportionate basis if the requirements stated below include more than one pattern and are distinguished as “Either I,” “or II,” “or III,” etc. For example, candidates possessing qualifying experience amounting to 50% of the required time of Pattern I, and additional experience amounting to 50% of the required time of Pattern II, may be admitted to an examination as meeting 100% of the overall experience requirements.

Click on the link below to review the California State Personnel Board class specification which contain the requirements for admittance to the exam:
Senior Transportation Planner Classification Specification

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MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Either I

Experience: One year of experience in the California state service performing transportation planning duties in a class comparable in level of responsibility to Associate Transportation Planner. 

Or II

Experience: Four years of experience in either one or a combination of the following areas. (At least one year must have been comparable in level of responsibility to an Associate Transportation Planner in the California state service.)

1.Federal, State, regional, or local transportation planning. OR 

2.Transit planning, transportation studies, transportation system planning studies, or legislative transportation studies.

(A Doctorate Degree in Transportation Planning may be substituted for three years of the general experience; a Master's Degree in Transportation Planning may be substituted for two years of the general experience; a master's degree in a general planning curriculum or a closely related field as identified above may be substituted for one year of the general experience.) AND
 
Education: Equivalent to graduation from college. (Additional qualifying experience may be substituted for the required education on the basis of one year of experience equal to one year of education.)

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KNOWLEDGE AND ABILITIES
Knowledge of:

1. The planning process and general practices of transportation planning

2. Research methods and techniques including conducting or participating in planning studies and contemporary transportation, environmental, land use, social, economic, fiscal, legal, and political issues

3. Effective public participation techniques

4. The Department’s mission, organization, policies and procedures

5. Federal and State laws and regulations pertaining to transportation planning

6. Concepts and terminology relating to transportation planning

7. Sources of funding transportation programs

8. The Department’s budgeting process

9. The Department’s Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) program objectives

10. Principles and techniques of selecting outside consultants

11. Principles and techniques of effective supervision and personnel management

12. A supervisor’s role in safety, health, labor relations and the Department’s Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) program and the processes available to meet these program objectives

13. Financial analysis principles and concepts, including cost-benefit analysis, risk management, data analysis, statistics and Departmental budgeting

14. Various multimodal and intermodal transportation concepts

15. Program management conventions and techniques, including program evaluation, strategic planning and risk management
Ability to:

1. Gather, compile, analyze, interpret, and present data

2. Reason basically and creatively

3. Develop formats to present and display data

4. Use a variety of analytical techniques to propose solutions to or provide information regarding transportation problems

5. Develop and evaluate alternatives

6. Present ideas effectively orally and in writing

7. Work effectively with others as an interdisciplinary team member

8. Establish and maintain effective and cooperative working relationships

9. Analyze problems and develop appropriate solutions

10. Evaluate general planning proposals

11. Organize and direct the work of a staff engaged in a variety of planning activities

12. Evaluate and monitor the work of consultants

13. Communicate effectively with other agencies, the public, and the media

14. Effectively contribute to the Department’s safety, health, labor relations and Equal Employment Opportunity program objectives

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EXAMINATION INFORMATION
This examination will consist of a Training & Experience Evaluation weighted 100%. In order to obtain a position on the eligible list, a minimum score of 70% must be attained.

Examinations will be accepted on a continuous basis and will be processed monthly. Testing is considered continuous, as new test dates can be set at any time as the departmental needs warrant.

Candidates will be notified of their scores approximately 4 - 6 weeks after the final monthly submission date.

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ADDITIONAL DESIRABLE QUALIFICATIONS
Awareness and sensitivity to social, economic, and environmental conditions which affect transportation planning; ability to delegate responsibility to others; ability to inspire the confidence of others; ability to further the recognition of the Department as a multimodal transportation organization.

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VETERANS' PREFERENCE
Veterans’ Preference will be applied to those competitors who are successful in this examination and who qualify for, and have requested, Veterans’ Preference through the California Department of Human Resources. Veterans who have achieved permanent civil service status are not eligible to receive Veterans’ Preference.

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CAREER CREDITS
Career Credits will be added to the final score of this examination.

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CONTACT INFORMATION
General questions on how to apply?  Click HERE for video tutorials.

For more information regarding this examination, please contact the Office of Examinations at (916) 227-7858 or email the Exam Analyst at Darren.Gee@dot.ca.gov.

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GENERAL INFORMATION
For an examination without a written feature, it is the candidate's responsibility to contact the testing department three weeks after the cut-off date if he/she has not received his/her notice.

Applications are available at Standard State Application (STD 678), California Department of Human Resources (CalHR) offices, local offices of the Employment Development Department, and the testing department on this job bulletin.

If you meet the requirements stated on this bulletin, you may take this examination, which is competitive. Possession of the entrance requirement does not assure a place on the eligible list. Your performance in the examination will be compared with the performance of the others who take this test, and all candidates who pass will be ranked according to their scores.

Caltrans reserves the right to revise the examination plan to better meet the needs of the service, if the circumstances under which this examination was planned change. Such revision will be in accordance with civil service laws and rules and all competitors will be notified.

Candidates needing special testing arrangements due to a disability must complete an STD679 and submit with the requested examination materials.

General Qualifications: Candidates must possess essential personal qualifications including integrity, initiative, dependability, good judgment, and the ability to work cooperatively with others; and a state of health consistent with the ability to perform the assigned duties of the class. A medical examination may be required. In open examinations, investigation may be made of employment records and personal history and fingerprinting may be required.

Eligible Lists: Eligible lists established by competitive examination, regardless of date, must be used in the following order: 1) sub-divisional promotional, 2) departmental promotional, 3) multi-departmental promotional, 4) service-wide promotional, 5) departmental open, 6) open. When there are two lists of the same kind, the older must be used first. Eligible lists will expire in one to four years unless otherwise stated on the bulletin.  Eligibility lists may be abolished at anytime after one year, per Departmental needs.  It is the candidates responsibility to maintain eligibility throughout the hiring process.

If High School Equivalence is Required: Equivalence to completion of the 12th grade may be demonstrated in any one of the following ways: 1) passing the General Educational Development (GED) Test; 2) completion of 12 semester units of college work; 3) certification from the State Department of Education, a local school board, or high school authorities that the candidate is considered to have education equivalent to graduation from high school; 4) for clerical and accounting classes, substitution of business college work in place of high school on a year-for-year basis.
If Veterans’ Preference is Warranted: Pursuant to Assembly Bill 372, Veterans’ Preference will be awarded as follows, starting January 1, 2014:

1.    Any veteran, widow or widower of a veteran, or spouse of a 100 percent disabled veteran, who achieves a passing score in an open examination, shall be ranked in the top rank of the resulting eligibility list.
2.    Any veteran who has been dishonorably discharged or released is not eligible for Veterans’ Preference.
3.    Veterans’ Preference is not granted once a person achieves permanent civil service status (Permanent State civil service status means the status of an employee who is lawfully retained in his/her position after completion of the applicable probationary period. This includes permanent intermittent, part-time, and full-time appointments. In addition, individuals who at any time achieved permanent State civil service status and subsequently resigned or were dismissed from State civil service are not eligible to receive Veterans’ Preference).

Veteran status is verified by the California Department of Human Resources (CalHR). Directions to apply for Veterans’ Preference are on the

Veterans’ Preference Application (CalHR Form 1093) which is also available at CalHR and the Department of Veterans Affairs.

If Career Credits is Warranted: In Open, Non-promotional examinations, Career Credits are granted to: 1) State employees with permanent civil service status, 2) full-time employees of the state who are exempt from State civil service pursuant to the provisions of Section 4 of Article VII of the California Constitution, and who meet all qualification requirement specified by the Board and have 12 consecutive months of service in an exempt position, and 3) individuals who have served one full year in, or are graduates of, the California Conservation Corps (eligibility shall expire 24 months after graduation from the California Conservation Corps). Three points are added to the final test score of those candidates who meet the above criteria, and who are successful in the examination. Such examinations cannot be for managerial positions described in Government Code Section 3513. Competitors not currently employed in State civil service who have mandatory reinstatement rights may also be eligible for career credits, but they must explain their service status in the appropriate section of the application Form 100-678. (Section 4 of Article VII of the California Constitution is posted at the State Personnel Board, 801 Capitol Mall and Sacramento).
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