Department For Transport
The Department for Transport works with agencies and partners to support a safe, efficient and sustainable transport system. Data and digital technology help teams understand how people and goods move, plan services, manage networks and make better-informed decisions.
By improving access to trusted transport data and developing digital skills, DfT is helping unlock innovation across road, rail, aviation and maritime. These capabilities are creating new ways to tackle complex challenges, improve everyday journeys and build a transport system ready for the future.
Register now to receive all the resources required to take part in the Department for Transport experience and discover how data is being used to answer real transport questions.
What’s involved?
Register and attend the
45 minute briefing session
Students work on the challenge
in their own time
Recorded industry
assessment
Certification of virtual
work experience
Choose your challenge
Select the challenge below that matches your current academic year group or stage of learning.
FIRST STEP CAREER CHALLENGE:
YEAR GROUPS 7-9, YEAR GROUPS 8-10 (Northern Ireland) & YEAR GROUPS S1-S3 (Scotland)
Wednesday 7th October at 4.30 pm
Bus Route Detective: Choose the Smartest Route
The Detective Story
Every day, thousands of people rely on buses to get to school, work, appointments and to visit friends and family. But not every bus route works as well as it could.
Some buses get stuck in traffic, some don’t reach the people who need them most, and some routes can take much longer than expected. Transport planners use data to understand how buses are used and make journeys quicker, safer and more reliable.
That’s where you come in!
Your Mission:
Join the transport planning team to help choose the smartest bus route.
What this career challenge will involve:
- Attend the live briefing to meet the transport team.
- Use our resources to solve the career challenge.
- Create a presentation to explain why your chosen route is the smartest option!
- Develop essential skills and receive certification.
NEXT STEP CAREER CHALLENGE:
YEAR GROUPS 10-13 + FE, YEAR GROUPS 11-14 + FE (Northern Ireland) & YEAR GROUPS S4-S6 (Scotland)
Thursday 8th October at 5.00 pm
The Journey to Your Future: Can Rail Get You There – On Time, On Budget, On Track?
Imagine you’ve been invited to an interview for your dream apprenticeship or university course. You’ve prepared for weeks, but there’s one problem – you need to rely on the railway to get you there on time.
Every day, thousands of people depend on trains to reach job interviews, exams, college, university and important appointments. Behind every journey is a team of transport professionals using data to make sure the railway runs safely, reliably and efficiently.
We need your help.
Your Mission:
Join the rail planning team to recommend the best journey, ensuring passengers arrive on time, stay within budget and enjoy a reliable journey.
What this career challenge will involve:
- Attend the live briefing to meet the rail planning team.
- Use our resources to solve the career challenge.
- Create a presentation to explain why your solution is the journey to the future.
- Develop essential skills and receive certification.
STEP UP CAREER CHALLENGE:
UNIVERSITY + HE
Thursday 22nd October at 6.00 pm
Can We Trust the Ride? When Autonomous Vehicles Take the Drive
Imagine booking an autonomous vehicle for an important journey. There is no driver behind the wheel – the vehicle relies on sensors, data and artificial intelligence to make every decision.
Your challenge is to investigate how well it performs and decide: would you trust the ride?
Your Mission:
Work with the transport planning team to solve one of the challenges below:
Choose your pathway
Excel: Data Detective
Explore the data, spot patterns and assess safety and reliability.
Best for students beginning their data literacy journey.
GIS: Map the Risk
Use location data and maps to discover where autonomous vehicles perform well—and where problems occur.
Ideal for geographers and spatial thinkers.
Data Science & AI: Predict the Journey
Use R, Python or AI to model performance, identify risk factors and predict when problems may happen.
Designed for students ready to apply coding and analytical skills.
What this career challenge will involve:
- Attend the live briefing to meet the transport team.
- Use our resources to solve the career challenge.
- Create a presentation to explain if we can trust the ride!
- Develop essential skills and receive certification.
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