Operations Planning, Scheduling, & Strategy (OPSS) Intern

As an intern, you will be supporting teams within the Operations Planning, Scheduling, and Strategy (OPSS) department on a variety of critical projects to design and deliver safe, reliable, frequent, and accessible service. OPSS is made up of several teams, including Service Planning and Scheduling, Alternative Service, Workforce Modernization Program, Lean Strategy, and Operations Analytics.

Example work includes:

• Service Planning and Scheduling: Planning support to structure bus routes, stops, and schedules.
• Alternative Service: Planning support for a diverse array of alternative service options during both planned and emergency subway and commuter rail closures.

We are seeking a people-person who wants to make our public transportation work better and who enjoys helping people and learning about the nuts of bolts of providing transit service.

As an intern, you will get guidance and mentorship from department leadership. Working in OPSS will provide exposure to teams and individuals tasked with redefining how the MBTA provides service to our customers; support similar planning and design efforts that have won accolades from industry peers; and be part of a recognized industry-leading team that is rebuilding the MBTA’s service.

Duties & Responsibilities

• ·Help MBTA staff in the field understand how service is operating, including communication with planners, dispatchers, field inspectors, and bus / train operators.
• Document and communicate findings and feedback internally with the rest of the team.
• With guidance from senior team members, conduct peer research on industry best practices and innovations. Share feedback back to our team so that we can improve service, plans, and designs that improve public transit services.
• Help OPSS team prepare presentations, memos, press releases, letters, maps, data, etc. that support ongoing planning efforts and communication.
• Help coordinate meetings including scheduling, agenda setting, and managing meetings.
• Assist the Schedules team with communicating information about schedule changes to customers including updating signage at stops or stations.
• Help provide data analysis using tools such as Excel to create charts and visualizations to communicate internal transit data.
• Help monitor, track, and flag other transportation projects implemented by municipalities or other agency patterns that may have direct or indirect impact on the provision of public transportation.
• Participate in team / staff meetings, organization events, fieldwork, project teams, or other duties as needed.
• Perform all other duties and projects that may be assigned.

* The statements contained in this job description are intended to describe the general nature and complexity of the work being performed by staff assigned to this job and do not represent an exhaustive list of all duties, tasks, and responsibilities required of staff assigned to this position. The physical demands and work environment characteristics described here-in are representative of those an employee may encounter while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations can be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.

Minimum Requirements & Qualifications

• Enrolled, for entire duration of employment, in an accredited high school or college / university (undergraduate and graduate levels).
• Sincere interest in public service, transit, or transportation and how it operates.
• Coursework, on-the-job experience, or other experiences demonstrating an interest in public transportation.
• Experience with planning, operations, policy, engineering, or project management.
• Experience working on tools or data that support planning, such GIS, database management, visualization software, graphic design, etc.
• Highly organized, motivated, and have great attention-to-detail.
• Desire to help improve public transportation, because you believe in making people’s lives better.
• Ability to pass writing and / or spreadsheet assessment, demonstrating skills related to position.
• Ability to independently commute to assigned work locations in the Boston, MA metro area, as required by the role.
• Authorized to work in the United States (international students in CPT, STEM, or OPT programs through a university are eligible to apply).

* The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and complexity of the work being performed by staff assigned to this job and do not represent an exhaustive list of all duties, tasks, and responsibilities required.