I've had a long-standing interest in transport going back to university where I focused on transport as part of my civil engineering degree. When I graduated, I applied to a few other companies that had transport teams, but it was Arup’s history of working on amazing projects that really attracted me. The Sydney Opera House is one of my favourite buildings (I got the chance to see it up close in 2016!) and I always mention it when I talk to people at graduate careers fairs now.

In my current role, I’m responsible for transport modelling. I currently work closely with Transport for London, using tools to assess schemes and communicate their impact. That might be a specific transport project, or a bigger project such as a new football stadium and its knock-on impact on local transport infrastructure.

“

One of the reasons I went into engineering in the first place was to have a tangible impact on something around me. Arup works on the projects that you read about in the news. I feel like you can really make a difference here. ”

I've found Arup to be a supportive environment and we are encouraged to develop our skills and experience. One of my proudest achievements to date is becoming a Chartered civil engineer with the Institution of Civil Engineers. It’s a gruelling process and I needed support to achieve this. I now act as a mentor to other engineers undertaking chartership which is really rewarding.

I’ve also had the chance to develop ideas that aren’t just about delivering for a client. One of my most interesting projects was ‘FlexKerbs’, an entry to a competition posing the question of how we can adapt our infrastructure to driverless cars. This looked at how driverless or autonomous cars can co-exist with all road users and through the introduction of flexible kerb space. Driven by local policy and real-time data, FlexKerbs intelligently adjust the allocation of kerb space uses throughout the day and week.

Although we didn’t win (we did come in the top 5 of over 100 entries!) the idea caught the imagination of the media and we received additional funding to explore the idea further. I’ve found that the company is supportive of this kind of work and wants people to develop interesting ideas that may influence our future work.

Beyond day-to-day work, I have found the people to be very supportive. Indeed, I think one of the reasons I’ve stayed so long is the people I work with, and the quality of work that we collectively deliver.