Some people make an impact not by being the loudest in the room, but by being consistently excellent. Shania Rajanayagam – Rail Engineer is one of those people, calm under pressure, thoughtful in her approach, and quietly raising the bar on every project she touches.
A Rail Engineer at Vitruvius, Shania works across complex transport and rail projects throughout Aotearoa, combining strong technical capability with clear, practical delivery. Her experience spans rail and transport project management, design and design management, business and investment case development, traffic modelling and data analytics, and level crossing safety impact assessments. She applies these skills across the full project lifecycle, from early planning and optioneering through to stakeholder engagement and delivery.
Shania has played key technical and leadership roles on major rail programmes nationwide. Her work includes leading the development of sustained annual renewal investment cases for both the Wellington and Auckland metro rail networks, supporting funding decisions and long‑term asset planning for some of New Zealand’s most critical transport infrastructure. She has also contributed to complex corridor planning and route protection projects in Auckland, including work on four‑tracking between Papakura and Pukekohe, where she authored transport assessments and assessments of environmental effects, drawing on her specialist knowledge of rail operations and level crossings.
A recognised leading specialist in level crossing safety, Shania has been the lead assessor for over 100 level crossing safety impact assessments across the country, with all assessments endorsed by KiwiRail. Her ability to identify risk, apply the SFAIRP process, and translate technical safety requirements into clear, implementable recommendations has informed projects ranging from local road upgrades to nationally significant programmes such as City Rail Link and the Speed and Infrastructure Programme.
Alongside her rail expertise, Shania has also led and contributed to geometric and safety design for road and intersection upgrades, speed management programmes, and active mode projects. Her work has included crash analysis, optioneering, scheme design, cost estimation, and stakeholder engagement, always with a focus on improving safety and outcomes for communities. Shania is currently providing project management and design services for Hutt City Council (HCC) on the Ava Rail Bridge Shared Use Path Replacement, and on Te Wai Takamori o Te Awa Kairangi (Riverlink).
That technical capability was formally recognised when Shania achieved Chartered Professional Engineer (CPEng) status at just 25 years old, an exceptional milestone that reflects her discipline, depth of knowledge, and commitment to continual improvement.
In 2025, Shania’s contribution was further acknowledged when she was named Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transportation (CILT) Young Achiever of the Year, recognising both the impact she is already having across major transport programmes nationwide and her emerging leadership within the sector. Closer to home, she was also awarded Vitruvian of the Year, Vitruvius’ highest people award, following nomination by her colleagues just seven months after joining the business. True to form, Shania sees these achievements simply as doing her job well and supporting those around her, a humility that speaks volumes about her character.
Beyond her technical expertise, Shania is someone people genuinely enjoy working with. She is generous with her time and knowledge, regularly mentoring younger engineers, sharing insights, and offering quiet support when it’s needed. Colleagues consistently describe her as approachable, kind, and willing to help, qualities that strengthen team culture as much as they improve project outcomes.
We’re incredibly proud of the impact Shania is making within Vitruvius and across the transport sector. If that was 2025, we look forward with interest to what 2026 brings.