Will AI replace transportation engineers?

Not on current evidence. Less than 30 minutes of a typical shift goes to tasks that AI or robots are doing today. The other 7h 53m (99%) stays with people. Separately, BLS expects about 6.4% more of these jobs by 2035 (all jobs: +3.5%).

AI shows up regularly in 1 of 26 tasks, about 7m of a typical shift. The biggest ones:

• Investigate or test specific construction project materials to determine compliance to specifications or standards. (6m a shift, AI mostly does it alone)

Not in workplaces like this one, based on a 2026 review of robot deployments. For 2 physical tasks, no robot has shown it can do the work yet.

7h 53m of a typical shift, or 99%, goes to tasks with no AI or robot evidence yet. No AI usage or robot deployment has shown up for these so far. The biggest:

• Design or prepare plans for new transportation systems or parts of systems, such as airports, commuter trains, highways, streets, bridges, drainage structures, or roadway lighting. (1h 28m a shift)
• Check construction plans, design calculations, or cost estimations to ensure completeness, accuracy, or conformity to engineering standards or practices. (51m a shift)
• Plan alteration or modification of existing transportation structures to improve safety or function. (38m a shift)
• Confer with contractors, utility companies, or government agencies to discuss plans, specifications, or work schedules. (38m a shift)
• Investigate traffic problems and recommend methods to improve traffic flow or safety. (32m a shift)

Much of it comes down to where and how the work happens. In-person, hands-on and high-stakes work is where AI and robots have made the least headway so far. In the official O*NET survey of people in this job:

• 73% say dealing with the public is very or extremely important
• 73% talk face to face with others every day
• 52% say a mistake would be very or extremely serious

On Indeed, job postings in the Civil Engineering sector are at 163% of their February 2020 level (all U.S. postings: 104%), up 6.3% from a year earlier, as of Oct 9, 2026. BLS separately expects about 23,000 openings a year in this job through 2035. Across all U.S. postings, 7.3% now mention AI skills. Sector postings cover more than this one job and move for many reasons besides AI.

The median pay is about $100,840 a year ($48.48 an hour), 98% above the median for all U.S. jobs ($50,980). Most people in this job earn between $68,240 and $163,220 a year; that range covers the middle 80%. Pay figures are from BLS, May 2025, and vary a lot by state and employer. Pick a state to compare:

BLS projects growth of 6.4% from 2025 to 2035, compared with 3.5% growth for all jobs. That's about 405,000 jobs in 2035. It expects about 23,000 openings a year, mostly from people retiring or changing careers. These projections don't single out AI as a cause.

About 368,000 people in the U.S., roughly 0.24% of all workers (BLS, May 2025). That makes it the 113th largest of the 796 jobs on this site. BLS expects about 405,000 in 2035.

The most common requirement is a bachelor's degree: about 77% of people in the job said so in the official O*NET survey. O*NET rates the job at level 4 of 5 for preparation, which usually means: bachelor's degree. Requirements vary by state and employer, especially for licensed work.

These come from the job's official skill ratings and from the tasks that AI and robots touch least today. Building them keeps you strong in the parts of the work that still need a person:

• Skills that matter more here than in most jobs: Time Management, Mathematics, Operations Analysis, Systems Evaluation
• Get strong at the parts of the job that stay with people (listed above), which take 7h 53m of a typical shift
• Tools employers list: Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Excel, Bentley MicroStation, Autodesk AutoCAD Civil 3D, Autodesk AutoCAD
• Learn to use AI well on the tasks where it already shows up in this job (listed above)

Yes. Occupational experts recently added these to the official task list, a sign of how the work itself is shifting. New tasks aren't rated for AI or robots yet:

• Develop plans for integration of drone technology into transportation systems for purposes such as delivery of goods or traffic monitoring.

These use similar skills. Matches come from 109 official ratings of skills, knowledge and work activities, and each needs the same or less preparation unless the official list relates the jobs directly:

• Civil Engineers (46m touched, $101k median pay)
• Water/Wastewater Engineers (0m touched, $101k median pay)
• Fire-Prevention and Protection Engineers (0m touched, $115k median pay)
• Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers (56m touched, $106k median pay)
• Environmental Engineers (17m touched, $107k median pay)

Each task carries its own evidence label. For this job: 2 observed in real AI use, 24 with no AI or robot evidence found. The minutes per task are estimates, not measured hours, and "no evidence" doesn't prove a task is safe.