blog: Catching up with Jeh Chan, ITP's new Technical Director
Monday 17th June 2019
Jeh moved from Australia to join ITP in May 2019 and has over 16 years’ experience in transport policy, strategy, planning, feasibility, scheme appraisal and implementation studies. After spending the first half of his transport planning career in the UK, he has managed and delivered transport projects in Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines and China.
Jeh has lived and worked in Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, China, as well as the UK, so he has extensive international project experience in which much of his work has included delivery of forward-looking and practical solutions for government and private sector-led transport infrastructure and solving complex transport problems for growing cities.
We've asked a few questions to find out more about him and his experiences that he'll be bringing to ITP...
What is your role be at ITP?
As a Technical Director, I am looking to build on ITP’s enviable reputation and strong track record of international work to expand its provision of consultancy services globally. I will be leading the bidding and project delivery in South East Asia – a region where I come from and have spent significant time working in.
What do you find most interesting about working on international projects?
Well, it's an adventure itself! To sum it up, it's visiting exotic places, meeting wonderful people, and delivering interesting (but often challenging) projects. What makes international projects most rewarding is that we can observe first-hand the great impact of our work in facilitating improvement in people’s quality of life. For example, I was a key member of the study team to develop the Greater Kuala Lumpur Public Transport Master Plan in 2011, which led to significant improvements to the public transport network in the region and contributed to economic and social development.
Which has been your favourite developing country to work in and why?
I have enjoyed working in many developing countries, trying to understand the local context and culture before delivering solutions to meet the needs of the local community. If I must choose one favourite, it will be Indonesia. The challenges there for urban transport are huge, but the potential to transform the transport system and improve mobility for more than 260 million people is simply irresistible for a planner.
Describe the challenges and opportunities working on projects in developing countries
The challenge for developing countries is to build a sustainable transport system that is not just available, but one that would attract a significant number of people to use.
Whilst the traditional ‘predict and provide’ approach is logical and historically well-tested, it cannot be expected that the outcomes will address future mobility needs in developing countries, where rapid urbanisation and population growth present unprecedented challenges.
More than ever before, there is increasing uncertainty in planning for the future, in part due to rapid evolutions in technology and shifts in social trends and the ways we travel.
I see the opportunities to leap through this conventional approach, where we use emerging technologies and analytical tools to help developing cities connect the information and data that already exists, to extract valuable insights to deliver an accessible and efficient public transport network.
Why are you excited about working at ITP?
ITP and the Department for International Development (DfID) have developed a ground breaking GTFS processing tool that can help developing countries to plan better public transport systems by making the case for consolidating, rerouting or upgrading public transport services. I am excited to see this tool being developed into a fully interactive app to empower transit authorities and operators in developing countries to understand and coordinate their public transport network, to identify supply problems and critical links, and develop a business case for investment to improve the provision of services.
If you like the sound of working at ITP, we currently have 5 job opportunities for transport professionals with 8+ years' experience including a role within international projects, as well as the smarter travel, transport strategy, and development planning sectors. To find out more about the roles and how to apply, click here.