Senior Research Assistant

Equal Opportunity Employer/Veterans/Disabled

We are looking to fill a position as Senior Research Assistant I (SRA I). Proposed

Start Date:

02/02/2026
Rank: K1 - Senior research Asst I

Working Title:

Senior Research Assistant I
Position Number: D93203
Representation: AU - AAUP
Faculty Type:
Fixed Term Research/Grant
Fixed Term End Date: 01/31/2027
Position FTE:
Variable between .5 and 1.0 FTE, starting at 1.0 FTE
Term of Service: 12 months

The Transportation Research and Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University (PSU) is a multidisciplinary hub for all things transportation. We are home to the Initiative for Bicycle and Pedestrian Innovation (IBPI), the data programs PORTAL and Bike Ped Portal
, the Better Block PSU program, and PSU's membership in Pac Trans
, the Pacific Northwest Transportation Consortium. Our continuing goal is to produce impactful research and tools for transportation decision makers, expand the diversity and capacity of the workforce, and engage students and professionals through education, seminars, and participation in research. The Senior Research Assistant I (SRA I) will assist in the technical management of two transportation data projects that archive diverse transportation data sources and provide access and analysis through a website to transportation professionals.

The SRA I will also help with:

- performing basic statistical analyses;

- managing and maintaining our databases; and - coordinating and developing data collection procedures.

The two transportation data projects are PORTAL and Bike Ped Portal
. PORTAL is the official Portland‑Vancouver Metropolitan regional transportation data archive. It provides a centralized database that facilitates the collection, archiving, and sharing of data and information for the region's transportation agencies. Data sources include 20‑second granularity loop detector data from freeways throughout the Portland‑Vancouver area, arterial signals, travel time, freight volumes, transit, incidence, VAS/VMS message, and weather data. Many of these data sources are received by PORTAL in real‑time.

Bike Ped Portal is a national non‑motorized count data archive. Like PORTAL it is a centralized database that collects, archives, and shares data for public agencies, researchers, educators, and other curious members of the public.

Managing these two projects, and future transportation data projects, requires the SRA I to assist with the management and performance of all back‑end development. Some front‑end experience is desirable but not immediately necessary.
PORTAL and Bike Ped Portal use Postgre

SQL to store data. The 28+ terabyte database consists of hundreds of tables varying in sizes from a few gigabytes to a few terabytes. The data comes from approximately 10 transportation agencies and is transferred via API and secure data transfer methods. The SRA I will assist with managing or maintaining the data feeds and the data in the database, and help build and design any additional data architecture needed to continue current and future data projects.

In addition to the database,
PORTAL and Bike Ped Portal provide web sites where users can access and visualize the data so some front‑end experience or familiarity is desirable but not necessary. We expect this position to grow with increasing responsibility.

• Database and Website Management (90%) – Responsible for helping with managing or maintaining the data feeds and the data in the database. Includes back‑end management of the web interface and developing new analysis and visualization applications and tools for both projects.
• Other duties assigned (10%) – Other duties assigned at the discretion of the supervisor, which may include troubleshooting and some management of other web related projects that may come up.

Degree:
Bachelor’s or Master’s with at least two years relevant experience.

• 2+ years of relevant data engineering experience: