Why do I need a Professional Qualification?
A key part of the Society's mission is to raise the profile of transport planners, as professionals on a par, at least with other professionals involved in transport and the built environment. The launch of the TPP qualification and the TPS Professional Development Scheme marked a key step. The TPP provides a high quality qualification, and the Professional Development Scheme a structured route to obtaining it.
Now, the Society is committed to encouraging its members and others to become Transport Planning Professionals. This is a series of profiles, in which leading transport planners respond to questions about their take on the topic.
 | David Bayliss TPPDavid Bayliss CBE, TPP chaired the Transport Planning Forum, a group whose work led to the establishment of the Transport Planning Society in 1997, was awarded an Honorary TPP in 2010.
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 | Tom van Vuren TPPTom van Vuren has been a transport planner for coming up to 30 years. As a Divisional Director in Mott MacDonald, and a national expert in transport modelling, Tom has the opportunity to encourage younger colleagues to seek continuous improvement in their competencies and the associated professional recognition. Tom is also a visiting Professor at Leeds University’s Institute for Transport Studies and a past Chair of the Association for European Transport. When not immersed in WebTAG or Local Transport Today, he enjoys foreign holidays with his family, good food and wine and photography (in any feasible combination); he has also been known to appear in the occasional village pantomime. |
 | Andy Southern TPPDr Andy Southern is Managing Director of Atkins’ Transport Planning & Management business. His first degree, in transport planning and operations combined with urban planning, was followed by a PhD on accessibility and the transport/land use links. After working for two other consultants and a brief period in local government, Andy joined Atkins as a Director in 1993. He is an Associate Fellow at Warwick Business School and was external examiner for the Westminster Transport Planning & Management Masters course for five years. Andy is a keen sportsman and maintains touch with ex-colleagues and industry friends on the golf course. He completed his first, and probably his last, marathon in Edinburgh last year. |
 | Dougie McDonald TPPDougie is a Divisional Director with MVA Consultancy, responsible for its work in Scotland, Wales, and Northern England. He joined MVA in 1989 with a degree in Transportation Engineering from Napier University, and has been with the consultancy ever since, including a spell in Singapore. After a time in Edinburgh, he opened a new office in Glasgow, before moving back to Edinburgh to be responsible for both offices. He now also looks after the company’s Manchester, Birmingham and Newcastle operations. Dougie has a wife and two daughters who look forward to seeing him at the weekend. |
 | Keith Mitchell TPPWe start with Keith Mitchell TPP, a past TPS Chair, the leader of the Transport Planning Skills Initiative, the first Chair of the TPP Professional Standards Committee and now Chair of the GoSkills Transport Planning industry Board - GoSkills is the Sector Skills Council that covers transport planning. Keith’s day job is as Chairman of consultants Peter Brett Associates. Based in Reading, Keith uses his folding bike for the last few miles when in London. |
