Page 7 - Microsoft Word - Women in Engineering Booklet

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Ruth Hunt

Title: Principal Traffic Modeller
Location: Bristol Office

My path to becoming a Traffic Modeller in a Traffic Engineering team was not a
direct one or even something that was planned. At school, maths and physics were
two of my best subjects but I did not take either at A Level, choosing subjects from
the humanities instead. With no clear career aspirations, I settled on a geography
degree course, knowing that it was a subject that could lead to many different
vocations.
Having always been interested in transport, from trains and cars to pedestrian
infrastructure, cable cars, funiculars, trams and ferries, when I saw an advertisement
for a job at the Automobile Association, I decided to apply. Working in Breakdown
Assistance initially I then moved to the Routes department where, armed with a full
set of UK Ordnance Survey maps I planned journeys from A to B for AA members.
Inevitably the birth of satnavs and the development of smart phones eventually
made the department redundant and my job search began again.
Still staying in transport, I took on a position as an Admin Assistant for a Transport
Planning Consultancy. After a year with this company, the then Colin Buchanan and
Partners, they gave me the opportunity to transfer from being an admin employee
to a professional one and I became a Graduate Transport Planner. The company
then suggested I could further my education by taking a master’s degree in
Transport Planning. I undertook this on a part time basis whilst still working full time for
the company. When this was complete my career as a Transport Planner began to
move forward.

A few years into my career I started learning more about traffic engineering,
strategic modelling and micro-
simulation modelling. This led to
my specialism in traffic modelling
and today I work as a traffic
modeller within the field of traffic
engineering.