UN Development Programme
Office/Unit/Project: UNDP Saudi Arabia Project to Support to the Royal Commission for Makkah City and Holy Sites (SRCMC)
Post Title: Transportation Planning Expert
Starting Date: April 2024
Level of Effort/Duration: Up to 110 days over 10 months with possibility for extension.
Location: Jeddah/Makkah and remotely
National or International consultancy: International
1.Project Description
Makkah City is one of the two holy cities of Islam in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), the other being Madinah City. The two holy sites attract millions of Hajj and Umrah pilgrims every year. Indeed, the Hajj and Umrah pilgrimages are the backbone of Makkah’s economy. However, the total population of Makkah City over the Hajj period reaches almost 5 million, almost doubling the population density and severely straining infrastructure and services. Nonetheless, a key goal of the Saudi Vision 2030 — the Kingdom’s long-term development blueprint launched in 2016 which aims to cut Saudi Arabia’s dependence on oil, while promoting new sectors, from manufacturing and financial services to culture and tourism — is to provide quality services to 30 million Umrah visitors every year by 2030.
The Royal Commission for Makkah City and Holy Sites (RCMC) was established by Royal Decree as a result of KSA’s commitment to improve the pilgrimage experience within the Kingdom. Its mandate is to improve services in Makkah City and the Holy Sites in a manner that is commensurate with their sanctity, with the overall aim of enhancing, strengthening, and evolving the city of Makkah for the benefit of all. The RCMC’s vision for the City of Makkah is of a polycentric, livable, cultural touristic, resilient and sustainable city for 2070. The focus of this project is however RCMC’s Strategy, Spatial Development Framework & Masterplan for the whole city and the Detailed Master Plan for the central area, for the target year of 2040 (Plan). This Plan is composed of three overlapping and cascading streams, A: Strategy, B: Spatial Development Framework and, C: Detailed Central Area Masterplan. Stream B covers the entire Plan boundary (approx. 2700 km2), while also taking the entire Plan boundary into consideration, B focuses on the urban envelope (approx. 570km2) with C focusing on the central area inside holy Makkah’s second ring road (approx. 10km2) only. Work on this Plan via a selected international consortium is expected to commence towards the end of 2023.
The RCMC seeks to be an effective contributor to the achievement of the specific objectives of Vision 2030 and to providing quality services to approximately 10 million pilgrims and 30 million Umrah visitors annually by 2040 as will be stipulated by the Plan. One of the main subject areas se to be addressed in the Plan will be Transportation especially the aspects related trip generation by the different city zones and land uses and those related to the enhancement of mobility and accessibility in a gradual, sustainable and environmentally friendly manner towards 2040. Transportation planning in this mission shall cover public and private transport (including pedestrian traffic where relevant) over streams A and B.
The RCMC is the main beneficiary of the Support to the Royal Commission for Mecca City and Holy SitesProject through which UNDP will provide technical assistance, quality control, advisory services, and capacity development support over a period of 24 months to strengthen the capacity of the RCMC to deliver on its mandate, fulfil its responsibilities and achieve its vision for Makkah City and the specific objectives of the Plan while also contributing to the realization of Saudi Vision 2030.
2.Scope of Work
Broadly speaking, the scope of this assignment will cover the Transportation Planning subject area (travel demand, trip generation and distribution, city-wide transportation network, modal split…. etc.), specifically the tasks and outputs being undertaken and submitted by the consortium preparing the Plan, over Streams A and B. This will entail support and assistance to RCMC in ensuring that this subject area is being addressed in the best, most efficient and most accurate way by the consortium preparing the Plan and that the outputs produced meet best international practice, local requirements, and RCMC expectations. The appointed expert will also ensure that this subject area is addressed in alignment with relevant KSA Vision 2030 objectives and KPI’s as well as with relevant RCMC policies and projects. In addition, the appointed expert will provide general support to RCMC in any transportation planning matter related to the planning situation in and around Makkah and related to the preparation of the Plan. As such, the scope is a hybrid between advisory & quality control related to the preparation by the selected consortium of Streams A and B of the Plan, and general technical support to RCMC in the general domain of transportation planning in and around Makkah.
3. Duties and responsibilities (Tasks):
The expert shall ensure that the following are accurately captured and addressed with respect to the process and outputs of the Plan prepared by the selected consortium:
- The current state of the transportation sector (public and private) and network, including any necessary benchmarking analysis.
- Transportation sector and network challenges and opportunities.
- Transportation sector and network forecasts and growth targets for the years 2030 and 2040.
- Interpretation and incorporation of the above in the preparation process and outputs of Streams A and B in lieu of their impact on the strategy orientation produced under the former and the spatial development scenarios being delivered under the latter. Additionally and where relevant, how these might impact pedestrian movement in the Central Area covered under Stream C.
As for general technical support to RCMC, the consultant shall:
- Within the overall scope of this assignment, support the RCMC planning and development departments and liaise with UNDP, stakeholders and relevant consultants by as much as required to successfully undertake the above tasks within the Plan and other supporting projects within the RCMC.
4. Deliverables
a. Executive inception report profiling the mission execution plan, the current state of the transportation sector (public and private) and network, including any necessary benchmarking analysis.
- Estimated Working Days to Complete: 10
- Target Date: TBD
- Approved By: RCMC PM and UNDP TL
b. Executive report covering current traffic Transportation sector and network challenges and opportunities, sector and network forecasts and growth targets for 2030 and 2040.
- Estimated Working Days to Complete: 10
- Target Date: TBD
- Approved By: RCMC PM
c. Executive report on the degree and quality of interpretation and incorporation of the above in the outputs of Stream A. The report should also highlight any necessary mitigation required, if any.
- Estimated Working Days to Complete: 10
- Target Date: 01.07.2024
- Approved By: RCMC PM
d. Executive report on the degree and quality of interpretation and incorporation of the above in the outputs of Stream B. The report should also highlight any necessary mitigation required, if any.
- Estimated Working Days to Complete: 10
- Target Date: 01.10.2024
- Approved By: RCMC PM
e. General technical support to the RCMC planning and development departments as/when needed within the scope of this mission.
- Estimated Working Days to Complete: Up to 65 working days
- Target Date: 01.12.2024
- Approved By: RCMC PM
f. Final report submitted within two weeks of completing the mission. The report should highlight lessons learned, key mitigation measures required and recommendations.
- Estimated Working Days to Complete: 5
- Target Date: 15.12.2024
- Approved By: UNDP TL
5. Institutional Arrangement
Overall, the Transportation Planning expert will work under the guidance of the Urban and Local Development Portfolio Manager at the UNDP Saudi Arabia Office. Technically, he/she will work under the guidance of the UNDP Project Team Leader (TL), coordinate with the RCMC PM and team, relevant stakeholders in addition to the UNDP appointed team of consultants throughout the duration of this mission.
Duty Station: This assignment will be undertaken on a hybrid basis with the selected expert expected to spend a minimum of 50 and up to 70 working days in Makkah, Saudi Arabia. Adjustment to this modality can be agreed in discussion with UNDP and RCMC.
6. Travel
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UNDP will cover up to three round tickets to/from the duty station.
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If unforeseen travel outside the consultant’s duty station city is requested by UNDP and not required by the Terms of References (ToR), such travel shall be covered by UNDP in line with applicable rules and regulations and upon prior written agreement. In such cases, the consultant shall receive living allowances not exceeding the United Nations (UN) Daily Subsistence Allowance (DSA) rate for such other location(s)
Note: A written approval from UNDP and relevant authorities will be required to facilitate the consultant’s travel to any locations than stated on this TOR on official missions where necessary.
7. Qualifications and Competencies of the Successful Individual Contractor:
Min. Education requirements
- BSc in civil engineering or equivalent, plus
- MSc or PhD in transportation planning or related field.
**Min. years of relevant work experience :**15
Required skills
- Technical report writing.
- Ability to conduct and/or moderate meetings.
- Travel demand and trip generation analysis and forecasting.
- Benchmarking, interpretation and analysis of transportation data and indicators.
- Analysis and assessment of city-wide transportation networks and ability to handle transportation modeling applications.
- Transportation environmental impacts.
- Transportation related GIS applications.
Desired skills in addition to the competencies covered in the Competencies section
Interpersonal and communication
Required Language(s)
Full proficiency in the English is required. Ability to read/write/speak Arabic will be an advantage.
Professional Certificates
An asset if acquired in relevant fields
Core Competencies
- Achieve Results: LEVEL 4: Prioritize team workflow, mobilize resources, drive scalable results/strategic impact
- Think Innovatively: LEVEL 4: Easily navigate complexity, encourage/enable radical innovation, has foresight
- Learn Continuously: LEVEL 4: Create systems and processes that enable learning and development for all
- Adapt with Agility: LEVEL 4: Proactively initiate/lead organizational change, champion new systems/processes
- Act with Determination: LEVEL 4: Able to make difficult decisions in challenging situations, inspire confidence
- Engage and Partner: LEVEL 4: Construct strategic multi-partner alliances in high stake situations, foster co-creation
- Enable Diversity and Inclusion: LEVEL 4: Create ethical culture, identify/address barriers to inclusion
How to apply
1. CV must be submitted online in PDF along with your Education Graduation Certificate.
Link to Apply: https://jobs.my-soc.org/apply/20240401225946/k7lQupCXYoFhEdJPq4f3HvZVm
2 . Indicate clear years of experience with each job (Month/Year)
3. If the candidate is currently employed by a government institution, he/she must be able to provide an unpaid leave of absence for the duration of the consultancy.
4. Only candidates who are short-listed will be contacted.
5. By submitting your application, you have read the Terms of Reference for this position and agree that any false, wrong, or incomplete information might lead to your disqualification in this recruitment process.
Deadline: 20-Apr-24