Americas Rail Track Engineering Leader

Joining Arup

Arup's purpose, shared values, and collaborative approach has set us apart for over 80 years, guiding how we shape a better world.

Arup is seeking an experienced Rail Track Leader to provide senior technical, project delivery, and client-facing leadership for major rail and transit projects in the Americas. This role will initially support the delivery of complex track design scope for major rail facilities and infrastructure programs, including design-build delivery, while helping grow Arup's detailed track design capability across the region.

This is a senior leadership role for an accomplished track engineer with recent, relevant experience delivering detailed track design for light rail, heavy rail, commuter rail, high-speed rail, yards, maintenance facilities, and/or complex rail infrastructure. The successful candidate will provide technical authority, delivery assurance, and Engineer of Record leadership for track design packages, while mentoring staff and helping position Arup for future rail opportunities in the Pacific Northwest and across the Americas.

The Opportunity

• Serve as senior technical lead and Engineer of Record for rail track design packages, including alignment, trackwork, special trackwork, yard track, mainline track, and facility interface areas.
• Lead detailed track design delivery from concept through final design, construction support, and closeout, ensuring work is coordinated, constructible, compliant, and delivered to the required quality.
• Provide technical direction and review for horizontal and vertical alignment, ballasted track, direct fixation, embedded track, low-vibration track, floating slab track, special trackwork, track drainage, clearances, and track/structure interfaces.
• Oversee the preparation, review, and certification of drawings, specifications, design reports, calculations, models, material submittals, and technical memoranda.[CT2.1]
• Provide senior leadership for track scope on design-build and progressive design-build projects, coordinating closely with contractors, owners, design managers, discipline leads, and subconsultants.
• Manage interdisciplinary interfaces between track and civil, structures, systems, traction power, vehicle maintenance facilities, operations, architecture, SMEP, drainage, and utilities design.
• Provide input to track constructability reviews and development of track construction sequencing in coordination with multidisciplinary reviews.
• Lead technical decision-making and risk management for track design, including identification and resolution of design, constructability, operational, safety, quality, and standards-compliance issues.
• Establish and maintain track design quality processes, including technical reviews, interdisciplinary reviews, checking procedures, comment resolution, and design assurance requirements.
• Support construction-phase services, including responding to RFIs, reviewing submittals, assisting with field changes, evaluating non-conformances, and supporting site observations or inspections as required.
• Build and maintain trusted relationships with transit agencies, contractor partners, subconsultants, and internal project leadership.
• Support rail pursuits, proposals, interviews, and client engagement by bringing senior track design credibility and recent detailed design experience.
• Mentor and develop junior and mid-level track engineers, helping grow a sustainable track design team in the Americas.
• Support resourcing, recruitment, work planning, and development of consistent track design delivery methods across regional and global rail projects.
• Contribute to knowledge sharing, lessons learned, and technical capability development across Arup's rail business.

At Arup, you belong to an extraordinary collective - in which we encourage individuality to thrive. Our strength comes from how we respect, share and connect our diverse experiences, perspectives and ideas.

You will have the opportunity to do socially useful work that has meaning - to Arup, to your career, to our members and to the clients and communities we serve.

Is this role right for you?

• Bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering or a closely related engineering discipline. Master's degree highly desirable.
• Licensed Professional Engineer required, with the ability to serve as Engineer of Record in relevant US jurisdictions. P.Eng in Canada is a plus.
• Minimum of 20 years of relevant rail track engineering experience, including recent detailed design delivery experience.
• Demonstrated experience leading track design packages for major rail or transit projects, including final design and construction-phase support.
• Strong understanding of applicable rail and transit standards, codes, design criteria, and agency requirements.
• Experience[CM3.1][JP3.2] with light rail, heavy rail, commuter and intercity rail, and/or high-speed rail for mainline, yards, and maintenance facilities.
• Experience with design-build delivery is required; progressive design-build experience is preferred.
• Demonstrated ability to integrate track design with multidisciplinary rail systems, civil, structural, drainage, utilities, facilities, and operational requirements.
• Strong technical judgment and ability to resolve complex design, interface, constructability, and standards-compliance issues.
• Experience leading technical teams, mentoring staff, coordinating subconsultants, and supporting quality assurance processes.
• Strong client relationship, communication, and presentation skills.
• Ability to support business development, pursuits, proposals, and interviews for major rail programs.
• Experience working with West Coast transit agencies including Sound Transit, California High-Speed Rail, LA Metro, or CalTrain. Experience working with other major North American rail clients is highly desirable.
• DBIA certification or experience working in integrated contractor/designer delivery environments is beneficial but not required.

Please note that all applicants must apply directly via the job portal. If this role is not quite what you are looking for, but you are interested in other opportunities for a future with purpose, please sign up to our Talent Community where you will be kept up to date with roles suitable for you to shape a better world.

What we offer you

At Arup, we care about each member's success, so we can grow together.

Guided by our values, we provide an attractive total reward package that recognizes the contribution of each of our members to our shared success. As well as competitive, fair and equitable pay, we offer a career in which all of our members can belong, grow and thrive - through benefits that support health and wellbeing, a wide range of learning opportunities and many possibilities to have an impact through the work they do.

We are owned in trust on behalf of our members, giving us the freedom, with personal responsibility, to set our own direction and choose work that aligns with our purpose and adds to Arup's legacy. Our members collaborate on ambitious projects to deliver remarkable outcomes for our clients and communities. Profit Share is a key part of our reward, enabling members to share in the results of our collective efforts.

Benefits at Work - At Arup, we have a comprehensive and valuable benefits program that works for our employees and their families while keeping costs low. These benefits provide health and welfare security for you as well as paid time off for rest and renewal. As a member of Arup, everyone shares in our success through a global profit share scheme (payments are dependent on the firm's financial performance). Our Global Profit Share Plan (paid bi-annually) provides an opportunity for you to share in the success of the Firm. As a valued employee of Arup, you can also choose to participate in our 401(k) plan with up to 10% company match to help you save for your future

Flexible Working - We believe that flexible arrangements create a more inclusive way of working that supports our diversity and the wellbeing of our people. Options for alternative schedules and the ability to work outside of the office for a portion of your workweek are available

Seattle Hiring Range - Hiring Range - The good faith base salary hiring range for this job if performed in Seattle is $220,000 to $260,000 per year. This range is commensurate with experience, educational background, and skill level. Benefits are not included in the base salary. Please note hiring ranges for candidates performing work outside of Seattle will differ.

Different People, Shared Values

Arup is an equal opportunity employer that actively promotes and nurtures a diverse and inclusive workforce. We welcome applications from individuals of all backgrounds, regardless of age (within legal limits), gender identity or expression, marital status, disability, neurotype or mental health, race or ethnicity, faith or belief, sexual orientation, socioeconomic background, and whether you're pregnant or on family leave. We are an open environment that embraces diverse experiences, perspectives, and ideas - this drives our excellence.

Guided by our values and alignment with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, we create and contribute to equitable spaces and systems, while cultivating a sense of belonging for all. Our internal employee networks support our inclusive culture: from race, ethnicity and cross-cultural working to gender equity and LGBTQ+ and disability inclusion - we aim to create a space for you to express yourself and make a positive difference. Discover more about life at Arup at www.arup.com/careers/your-life-at-arup.

Our Application Process

We will be reviewing our candidates for this position on a rolling basis. Once you have applied you will be evaluated and potentially moved on to the next round, at which point a member of the talent resourcing team will reach out to you directly.

Arup is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, spouse of a protected veteran, or disability.

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