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Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators in South Dakota

Considering working as a Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators in South Dakota? Here’s what you need to know. 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.

What do Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators Make in South Dakota?

The rail-track laying and maintenance equipment operators working in South Dakota, wages run about $64,550 per year (or roughly $31.03/hour).Pay can range from $60,600 at the 10th percentile to $71,400 at the 90th percentile.

Wage Statistic	Annual	Hourly
10th percentile	$60,600	$29.14
25th percentile	$64,540	$31.03
Median (50th)	$64,550	$31.03
75th percentile	$71,370	$34.31
90th percentile	$71,400	$34.33

The location quotient — a measure of how concentrated this occupation is in South Dakota nationwide is 1.35, indicating that rail-track laying and maintenance equipment operators are more concentrated here than the national average.

National Wage Comparison

Nationally, rail-track laying and maintenance equipment operators earn a median of $60,332 per year ($29.01/hour), higher than the South Dakota median.

Employment Outlook

There are roughly 200,941 rail-track laying and maintenance equipment operators nationwide. In South Dakota alone, about 70 people work in this role. That’s below the typical state, which employs around 220 rail-track laying and maintenance equipment operators.

Top States for Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators Employment

View the states that employ the most rail-track laying and maintenance equipment operators work.

State	Number Employed
New York	3,330
Texas	1,160
Ohio	980
Illinois	960
Florida	580
California	560
Pennsylvania	560
Indiana	510
Minnesota	430
Washington	410
Massachusetts	390
Georgia	370
Tennessee	350
Oklahoma	310
Maryland	290
North Carolina	290
Kansas	280
New Jersey	240
Alabama	220
Colorado	200

Highest-Paying States for Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators

These states pay the most for rail-track laying and maintenance equipment operators.

State	Annual Median Salary
Maryland	$90,410
Delaware	$86,330
New York	$84,840
Massachusetts	$82,840
Indiana	$79,320
Iowa	$79,240
Illinois	$76,930
Arizona	$75,770
New Mexico	$74,460
Wisconsin	$70,870

Skills

Key rail-track laying and maintenance equipment operators skills, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Knowledge Areas

Important knowledge areas for this occupation, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Abilities

Key abilities for rail-track laying and maintenance equipment operators, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Daily Tasks

Day-to-day, rail-track laying and maintenance equipment operators typically:

• Patrol assigned track sections so that damaged or broken track can be located and reported.
• Repair or adjust track switches, using wrenches and replacement parts.
• Weld sections of track together, such as switch points and frogs.
• Observe leveling indicator arms to verify levelness and alignment of tracks.
• Operate single- or multiple-head spike driving machines to drive spikes into ties and secure rails.
• Operate track wrenches to tighten or loosen bolts at joints that hold ends of rails together.
• Cut rails to specified lengths, using rail saws.
• Lubricate machines, change oil, or fill hydraulic reservoirs to specified levels.
• Drill holes through rails, tie plates, or fishplates for insertion of bolts or spikes, using power drills.
• Clean tracks or clear ice or snow from tracks or switch boxes.
• Clean, grade, or level ballast on railroad tracks.
• Raise rails, using hydraulic jacks, to allow for tie removal and replacement.

Work Activities

• Getting Information
• Making Decisions and Solving Problems
• Operating Vehicles, Mechanized Devices, or Equipment
• Handling and Moving Objects
• Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials
• Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
• Performing General Physical Activities
• Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
• Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards
• Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge
• Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings
• Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work

Tools & Technology

Common tools and software used in this occupation include: Hot technologies: Microsoft Excel

What Major Will Prepare You For This Career?

Programs that train for this career include:

• Ground Transportation

Related Careers

Other careers like rail-track laying and maintenance equipment operators include:

• Construction Laborers
• Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators
• Pile Driver Operators
• Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators
• Pipelayers
• Structural Iron and Steel Workers

Also Known As

Ballast Cleaning Machine Operator, Emergency Service Restorer, Machine Operator, Maintenance Laborer, Oil Distributor Tender, Portable Grinding Machine Operator, Rail Maintenance Worker, Rail Track Layer, Rail Track Maintainer, Railroad Track Mechanic, Railway Equipment Operator, Section Hand, Section Laborer, Special Equipment Operator, Stone Crusher Operator.

References

• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics — https://www.bls.gov/oes/
• O*NET Online — https://www.onetonline.org/
• BLS Employment Projections — https://www.bls.gov/emp/
• O*NET-SOC code: 47-4061.00