Data Scientist

New York City Department of Transportation
$70,087.00 - $84,805.00
United States, New York, Manhattan
Dec 19, 2024
Transportation Planning and Management (TPM) is responsible for the safe, efficient, and environmentally responsible movement of people and goods on the City's streets, supporting the larger goals of economic and social vitality for people living, working, and doing business in New York City. The Division's responsibilities include planning, street design, technical analysis, signs, transit development, freight mobility and markings, ensuring the safety of motor vehicle occupants, pedestrians, and cyclists. The Bicycle Unit is responsible for the nation's largest network of on-street bicycle facilities (1000+ lane-miles), enhancing street safety, and increasing bike ridership in NYC. The team's primary focus is on innovative redesign of City streets to expand and improve the bike network. The NYC DOT is seeking to hire a highly motivated, creative, and critical thinker who is passionate about all forms of communications and views it as an integral part in increasing cycling and micromobility in New York City. Under the direction of senior staff, the selected candidate will perform tasks including overseeing existing and new data collection and analysis programs; expand automated data collection program; plan, design, maintain, and support the Bike Unit's internal databases related to bicycle and micromobility counts; use programming languages to examine complex and nuanced questions and developing statistical models; carry out related tasks related to compliance with Open Data Law (LL12). Assist with the management of grants related to the development of pedestrian and bicycle/micromobility model. Conduct research projects with internal stakeholders and external partners; develop and apply post-street improvement project evaluation processes; develop framework to evaluate non-Capital SIPs for existing and new material performance, and maintenance. Use data to identify travel patterns, conduct safety analysis, and analyze future infrastructure investment. Develop research reports, and public facing results; communicate technical and economic issues to technical and non-technical audiences; and perform related duties. The ideal candidates should be detail oriented, accurate and a capable team player, plus have a positive attitude and possess excellent communication skills. Under the guidance and direction of senior staff, the candidates will be expected to work collaboratively and inclusively, seeking to cultivate continued professional development and effectively communicate with all stakeholders. The candidates will be responsible for ensuring adherence to all agency safety rules and regulations in creating a safe work environment for themselves and colleagues, ensuring all safety equipment and gear are used and worn properly where/when required. The Department of Transportation's (DOT) mission is to provide for the safe, efficient, and environmentally responsible movement of people and goods in the City of New York and to maintain and enhance the transportation infrastructure crucial to the economic vitality and quality of life of our primary customers, City residents. Minimum Qualifications 1. For Assignment Level I (only physical, biological and environmental sciences and public health) A master's degree from an accredited college or university with a specialization in an appropriate field of physical, biological or environmental science or in public health. To be appointed to Assignment Level II and above, candidates must have: 1. A doctorate degree from an accredited college or university with specialization in an appropriate field of physical, biological, environmental or social science and one year of full-time experience in a responsible supervisory, administrative or research capacity in the appropriate field of specialization; or 2. A master's degree from an accredited college or university with specialization in an appropriate field of physical, biological, environmental or social science and three years of responsible full-time research experience in the appropriate field of specialization; or 3. Education and/or experience which is equivalent to "1" or "2" above. However, all candidates must have at least a master's degree in an appropriate field of specialization and at least two years of experience described in "2" above. Two years as a City Research Scientist Level I can be substituted for the experience required in "1" and "2" above. NOTE: Probationary Period Appointments to this position are subject to a minimum probationary period of one year. Preferred Skills Ideal candidates must be able to demonstrate strong creative and analytical problem-solving skills and have experience or demonstrate interest in transportation dynamics, transportation policy, bike share, and/or cycling. Experience working with the public, community groups, and New York City agencies, and strong verbal and written communication skills are also desired. Experience or interest in AutoCAD, ArcGIS, Excel, PowerPoint, and/or Adobe Creative Cloud are desirable. It is desirable that the candidate possess both a valid New York State Motor Vehicle Driver's License and a strong interest in cycling on NYC streets. Demonstrated experience producing clear and effective data visualizations is highly desirable, as is experience explaining complex, nuanced analyses to nontechnical and unacquainted audiences. Ability to relate complex trends in the data to larger policy issues is very important, as is being able to work with the operations and planning team to tailor data analysis and products to their needs. Familiarity with pyspark is desirable, as is experience with Power BI and/or JavaScript, including leaflet, or the folium package in Python. Preference will be given to candidates who have demonstrated experience or interest in transportation planning, logistics, bike share, micro mobility, cycling, and working with or in the public sector. Public Service Loan Forgiveness As a prospective employee of the City of New York, you may be eligible for federal loan forgiveness programs and state repayment assistance programs. For more information, please visit the U.S. Department of Education's website at https://studentaid.gov/pslf/. Residency Requirement New York City residency is generally required within 90 days of appointment. However, City Employees in certain titles who have worked for the City for 2 continuous years may also be eligible to reside in Nassau, Suffolk, Putnam, Westchester, Rockland, or Orange County. To determine if the residency requirement applies to you, please discuss with the agency representative at the time of interview. Additional Information The City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy.