National transport planning, placemaking and engineering consultancy PJA has made a key appointment at its Manchester office. Catriona Swanson has been hired as associate at the Piccadilly Place office, which serves the North West. She will support director Chris Sibthorpe in advising public and private sector clients on cycling and walking schemes as well as PJA’s wider expertise in designing better places. Swanson joins from Arup where she set up and ran the North West and Yorkshire active travel team and worked on regional and national projects. She was leading Transport for Greater Manchester’s Active Neighbourhoods programme, working with Sustrans and ten local authorities to deliver pilot active travel neighbourhoods.