Travel Demand Modeler at Charlotte, Department of Transportation
Year graduated from Carolina Planning: 2016
Specialization at Carolina Planning: Transportation
Why did I pursue a career in city planning?
My fascination with city planning started when I lived in Tianjin, China, a big city where transportation infrastructure could not accommodate a large population. I still remember every Friday I come back home from boarding school, that 35 miles transfer to a 1.5-hour drive. After realizing city planning would help shaping better and healthier living environment, I decided to pursue a degree in planning and continued my career in transportation planning.
Where am I now?
Currently I work at the Charlotte Department of Transportation as a travel demand modeler. Charlotte is such a fast-growing are and our mission is to ensure the delivery of quality transportation services and to promote the safety, health and quality of life of the citizens. My major responsibility is to forecast future travel, on both macro- and micro-level. If we do a road diet on Main St, will it still serve at an acceptable level of service in current year, in 10 years, or even 20 years? Will the proposing development affect road network adversely and need to pay for improvement? My daily work is to answer those types of questions using various methods.
What does the future hold?
I love my job right now. It’s both interesting and challenging. For the future, I plan to be more knowledgeable within my field and also developing management skills.
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Past project accomplishments:
- Performance Analysis of Chapel Hill Transit
- Conflicts in the Urban Renewal of the Historic Conservation Area
- Research on Conflicts in Urban Renewal Process of Nanjing Historic Area
- Optimizing the Guiding System of Urban Underground Space