What Does it Take to Be a Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operator?
Career Description Lay, repair, and maintain track for standard or narrow-gauge railroad equipment used in regular railroad service or in plant yards, quarries, sand and gravel pits, and mines. Includes ballast cleaning machine operators and railroad bed tamping machine operators.
Life As a Rail-Track Laying & Maintenance Equipment Operator: What Do They Do?
- Operate track-wrench machines to tighten or loosen bolts at joints that hold ends of rails together.
- Turn wheels of machines, using lever controls, to adjust guidelines for track alignments or grades, following specifications.
- Engage mechanisms that lay tracks or rails to specified gauges.
- Observe leveling indicator arms to verify levelness and alignment of tracks.
- Cut rails to specified lengths, using rail saws.
- Drill holes through rails, tie plates, or fishplates for insertion of bolts or spikes, using power drills.
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Qualities of a Rail-Track Laying & Maintenance Equipment Operator
Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators state the following job skills are important in their day-to-day work.
Operation Monitoring: Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
Operation and Control: Controlling operations of equipment or systems.
Troubleshooting: Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it.
Equipment Maintenance: Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.
Critical Thinking: Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Monitoring: Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Related Job Titles for this Occupation:
- Track Supervisor
- Rail Maintenance Worker
- Section Laborer
- Track Welder
- Track Repair Person
What Kind of Rail-Track Laying & Maintenance Equipment Operator Job Opportunities Are There?
There were about 14,000 jobs for Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operator in 2016 (in the United States). New jobs are being produced at a rate of 8.6% which is above the national average. The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts 1,200 new jobs for Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operator by 2026. There will be an estimated 1,500 positions for Rail-Track Laying & Maintenance Equipment Operator per year.
The states with the most job growth for Rail-Track Laying & Maintenance Equipment Operator are Florida, Texas, and South Carolina. Watch out if you plan on working in Minnesota, Alaska, or Arkansas. These states have the worst job growth for this type of profession.
Do Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators Make A Lot Of Money?
The salary for Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators ranges between about $33,970 and $79,900 a year.
Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators who work in Massachusetts, New York, or Oregon, make the highest salaries.
How much do Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators make in different U.S. states?
| State | Annual Mean Salary |
|---|---|
| Alabama | $45,170 |
| Arizona | $49,670 |
| Arkansas | $52,660 |
| California | $51,330 |
| Colorado | $54,160 |
| Florida | $47,060 |
| Georgia | $52,440 |
| Idaho | $55,690 |
| Illinois | $56,610 |
| Indiana | $57,100 |
| Iowa | $52,840 |
| Kansas | $50,290 |
| Kentucky | $45,780 |
| Louisiana | $52,690 |
| Maine | $44,460 |
| Maryland | $60,500 |
| Massachusetts | $76,360 |
| Michigan | $53,190 |
| Minnesota | $50,040 |
| Missouri | $48,380 |
| Montana | $54,390 |
| Nebraska | $58,960 |
| New Hampshire | $36,180 |
| New Jersey | $57,880 |
| New Mexico | $53,290 |
| New York | $69,080 |
| North Carolina | $48,800 |
| Ohio | $49,700 |
| Oklahoma | $37,850 |
| Oregon | $62,680 |
| Pennsylvania | $57,510 |
| South Carolina | $39,250 |
| South Dakota | $48,320 |
| Tennessee | $52,060 |
| Texas | $48,590 |
| Utah | $47,820 |
| Vermont | $49,250 |
| Virginia | $54,980 |
| Washington | $56,410 |
| West Virginia | $58,940 |
| Wisconsin | $50,560 |
| Wyoming | $65,850 |
What Tools do Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators Use?
Below is a list of the types of tools and technologies that Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators may use on a daily basis:
- Microsoft Excel
- Data entry software
- Timekeeping software
Becoming a Rail-Track Laying & Maintenance Equipment Operator
Education needed to be a Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operator:
How Long Does it Take to Become a Rail-Track Laying & Maintenance Equipment Operator?
Where Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators Work
The table below shows the approximate number of Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators employed by various industries.
Similar Careers
Those thinking about becoming a Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operator might also be interested in the following careers:
Those who work as a Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operator sometimes switch careers to one of these choices:
- Light Truck or Delivery Services Drivers
- First-Line Supervisors of Agricultural Crop and Horticultural Workers
- Mine Cutting and Channeling Machine Operators
- Locomotive Engineers
References:
Image Credit: Hic85 via Public Domain
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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