Transportation Director

About the role

The Transportation Director provides executive leadership, vision, and administration for the Orange County Transportation Department, guiding the planning, coordination, and delivery of transportation and transit programs that connect residents to employment, education, medical care, and other essential destinations across the county and the broader region.

Responsibilities

• Stabilize and clarify transportation funding sources.
  • Clarify the status of STIP funding.
  • Partner with NCDOT to confirm federal dollars are used appropriately.
  • Develop a five-year funding plan, recognizing that roughly one-third of funding comes from a dedicated transit tax which is currently under review through the Orange County Transit Plan.
• Strengthen department structure and operations.
  • Establish clear procedures, standards, and day-to-day operating practices (including ridership tracking and financial auditing).
  • Reorganize the staff working group.
  • Fill existing vacancies.
  • Provide consistent stability and leadership for staff.
• Expand and optimize mobility services.
  • Scale Mobility on Demand in a financially sustainable manner.
  • Increase ridership and coverage on fixed routes.
  • Define the optimal future of transit countywide.
  • Review the allocation of resources across current options.
• Deepen regional and inter-jurisdictional partnerships.
  • Partner with Chapel Hill and southern-county services.
  • Coordinate paratransit and other services with neighboring jurisdictions.
  • Negotiate effectively with GoTriangle.
  • Align County investments with projects NCDOT and the MPO can support.
• Place transportation in regional context for the Board of County Commissioners.
  • Explain funding and spending in accessible terms.
  • Communicate the realities of preliminary design plans for projects that are unlikely to advance.
• Implement and integrate adopted plans.
  • Carry out the adopted countywide and transit plans.
  • Evaluate current practices.
  • Recommend innovation where possible.
  • Combine separate plans such as bicycle-pedestrian coordination with the County trail plan.
• Build community presence and visibility.
  • Quickly establish the Director's internal and external presence.
  • Raise transit visibility in the community.
  • Engage residents and OUTBoard advisory members early in key processes.
  • Meet with the Human Services Director to understand human-services transportation needs.

Requirements

• A bachelor's degree in public or business administration, or a related field of study.
• Five (5) years of executive-level experience related to program evaluation, performance measurement, planning, engineering, or budget development and evaluation, including transit systems management, operations, and planning.
• A valid driver's license valid in the State of North Carolina for the type of vehicle or equipment operated.

Qualifications

• Thorough knowledge of transportation principles and methods for moving people and goods, including the relative costs and benefits of different approaches.
• Solid command of strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources practices, public finance, budgeting, and the laws and regulations that govern transportation programs.
• Experience navigating the FTA regulatory environment, procurement, and the purchase of vehicles and transit capital projects.
• Technical depth combined with strong interpersonal and political acumen.
• Ability to listen well, actively engage and collaborate with stakeholders across a diverse community, identify themes, and translate them into actionable plans.
• Clear communication skills, including the ability to explain technical and financial concepts to the Board, advisory members, and residents.
• Leadership character, including innovation, vision, willingness to test boundaries, and development of creative solutions in a limited funding environment.
• Customer focus and empathy towards residents who depend on services, including dialysis patients and people with mobility needs.
• Experience as a rural transportation leader, with familiarity with benchmarks like Wilson, Alamance County, and Burlington, North Carolina, and a track record of financing a rural county transportation system and managing high-profile projects.
• Collaborative, approachable, and patient leadership, able to manage a diverse staff, address inter-staff conflict, and foster collaboration among strong regional partners.
• Politically savvy, comfortable working within a council-manager form of government, and skilled at engaging advisory boards and residents while helping Commissioners draft sound policy.
• Dependable, flexible, and accountable, with high integrity, strong organizational skills, and a genuine sense of ownership for outcomes.
• Familiarity with Vision Zero planning and the ability to connect the County's transit plan to the broader Durham, Wake County, and MPO context.

Skills

• Technical command of transportation principles and methods.
• Strong interpersonal and political acumen.
• Effective communication skills, including the ability to explain technical and financial concepts to the Board, advisory members, and residents.
• Leadership character, including innovation, vision, willingness to test boundaries, and development of creative solutions in a limited funding environment.
• Customer focus and empathy towards residents who depend on services, including dialysis patients and people with mobility needs.
• Experience as a rural transportation leader, with familiarity with benchmarks like Wilson, Alamance County, and Burlington, North Carolina, and a track record of financing a rural county transportation system and managing high-profile projects.
• Collaborative, approachable, and patient leadership, able to manage a diverse staff, address inter-staff conflict, and foster collaboration among strong regional partners.
• Politically savvy, comfortable working within a council-manager form of government, and skilled at engaging advisory boards and residents while helping Commissioners draft sound policy.
• Dependable, flexible, and accountable, with high integrity, strong organizational skills, and a genuine sense of ownership for outcomes.
• Familiarity with Vision Zero planning and the ability to connect the County's transit plan to the broader Durham, Wake County, and MPO context.

Benefits

Orange County offers competitive benefits, including health insurance, retirement plans, paid time off, and other employee perks.

Pay

The salary range for this position is $150,000 - $180,000 annually, depending on qualifications and experience.

Schedule

The Transportation Director works a standard Monday through Friday schedule, typically 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM.