By
eHow Careers & Work Editor
Difficulty: Moderately Challenging
Step1
Earn a high school diploma or a GED. Pay attention in math classes and take advantage of any computer lab opportunities offered. These skills are essential if you want to become a traffic engineer. A traffic engineer often estimates the cost of improvements in traffic systems and plans new developments.
Step2
Attend a college or technical university. Take courses in telecommunications and engineering. Have an aptitude for technology and design. You must be able to use major transport technology and understand the components of traffic systems. If you want to become a traffic engineer, you must have the ability to design street and signal systems. Be analytical and a problem solver because you must be able to evaluate traffic control measures. If you work in a centralized operations center (at a TV or radio station, for example), you must have excellent communication skills.
Step3
Develop strong organizational skills. The Intelligent Transportation Systems are part of a huge mobile network. You must be able to manage information coming from highway messaging signs over highways and analyze data to supervise the flow of traffic in a safe and efficient manner.
Step4
Know that if you want to become a traffic engineer, you can work on a local, state or federal level. State and local levels control traffic on a day to day basis. If you work for the government, you may be assigned to the Federal Highway Administration. On this level, you can play a part in national transportation systems. This agency conducts research and analyzes data on roadways and highways across the nation to find out what methods work best. If you become a traffic engineer and work with the Federal Highway Administration, you'll play a part in funding resources to improve ever-changing technology for traffic control systems.
