All Things Urban

TNO connects people and knowledge to create innovations that boost the competitive strength of industry and the well-being of society in a sustainable way. This is our mission and it is what drives us in our work every day. TNO is an independent research organisation that employs some 3,000 specialists. We believe in the joint creation of economic and social value. Our strategy is a reflection of the trends we observe in society and technology.

Are you fascinated by new developments such as the Internet of Things, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and their use in the mobility system such as cooperative driving, the driverless car and Mobility as a Service? Join our Sustainable Urban Mobility and Safety department! The Sustainable Urban Mobility and Safety department of the Traffic & Transport unit deals with the many facets of the mobility system. The department is characterised by many different disciplines that work closely together to come up with integrated solutions to the urban and mobility problems of tomorrow, with the application and integration of technology in today's society being the essence of the work. Experts in the department (including traffic experts, econometricians, mathematicians and planners) develop instruments that enable policymakers at national and international level to facilitate decision-making on investments. As such, the SUMS department is at the heart of two thematic programmes, Mobility & Logistics and Smart Cities. Interdisciplinarity extends when considering the Traffic & Transport Unit includes Sustainable Transport and Logistics, Intelligent Vehicle Safety and Powertrains, with whom SUMS works regularly.

To understand how innovations affect the mobility system, we use models. You develop instruments – models – that enable policymakers at national and international level to examine the investments they make. Your contribution to projects consists mainly of modelling Smart Mobility solutions. You translate concepts into formulas, models and code. To represent reality as accurately as possible, you are looking for new solutions to turn data into information that you can use to formulate models. The SUMS team works for leading customers, such as recently with Google and the municipality of Amsterdam. The work done at SUMS is complex in terms of content and you will be looking for quantitative solutions. For example, simulating Smart Mobility measures such as modelling driverless vehicles or Mobility as a Service, making data-based travel time forecasts and processing GPS data from users’ apps to analyse travel behaviour. You will be part of the team and you will work with colleagues in a project environment to achieve practical solutions. As your colleagues sometimes have different backgrounds, you learn from them as well as take them with you in your approach. Depending on your background and interest, you may focus on processing and merging large amounts of data or on modelling & simulation.

- You hold a university degree in Traffic Science (or in transport/ mobility) with above-average results; - You have in-depth technical domain knowledge of traffic and transport, you excel in analysing the traffic system and you are conceptually strong; - You have knowledge of mathematical and traffic algorithms, traffic data and preferably different data formats; - You have the creativity to find new solutions to turn data into information and formulas that reflect reality as closely possible; - You do not shy away from trying to fully fathom complex matters and are able to choose pragmatic solutions; - You have experience with programming mathematical algorithms in Matlab, Java, Python or C#, with using traffic models such as Vissim and Omnitrans and with handling large amounts of data with for example MySQL; - You are keen to solve any relevant complex problems in a quantitative way and, as a real team player, you seek help from other experts; - You can explain your approach to others and make them enthusiastic about it.

Work enjoyment means something different for each employee. This is why we offer a-la-carte terms and conditions of employment that you can switch around on a monthly basis. Flexible working hours (like 4 days x 9 hours) and different leave schemes mean that you can create a package attuned to your specific wishes. TNO attaches great value to both your personal and your professional development. Many opportunities exist for you to develop: conferences, courses, workshops, coaching, intervision, mentoring and job rotation. At TNO you can orchestrate your own career.

This job is available for international candidates.