Installation, maintenance and repair
Signal and track switch repairers
Install, inspect, test, maintain, or repair electric gate crossings, signals, signal equipment, track switches, section lines, or intercommunications systems within a railroad system.
Median pay
$92,460
Growth to 2035
+2%
little or no change
Openings a year
800
Time to qualify*
6 months
* From a bachelor's degree in an unrelated field.
Pay
Signal and track switch repairers
Getting in
- Typical entry education
- High school diploma or equivalent
- On-the-job training
- Moderate-term on-the-job training
- Prior experience
- None
What the work is like
Dealing with the public
Unpleasant or angry people
Time pressure
Cost of a mistake
Freedom to make decisions
Repeating the same tasks
Time sitting
Time standing
Outdoors in all weather
Hazardous conditions
Signal and track switch repairers: 39% usually work over 40 hours a week
Core tasks
- Inspect and test operation, mechanical parts, and circuitry of gate crossings, signals, and signal equipment such as interlocks and hotbox detectors.
- Inspect electrical units of railroad grade crossing gates and repair loose bolts and defective electrical connections and parts.
- Test and repair track circuits.
- Drive motor vehicles to job sites.
- Install, inspect, maintain, and repair various railroad service equipment on the road or in the shop, including railroad signal systems.
- Tighten loose bolts, using wrenches, and test circuits and connections by opening and closing gates.
- Inspect switch-controlling mechanisms on trolley wires and in track beds, using hand tools and test equipment.
- Replace defective wiring, broken lenses, or burned-out light bulbs.
Also called: Railroad Signal Maintainer · Signal and Communications Maintainer · Signal Inspector · Signal Maintainer · Signal Maintenance Technician · Signal System Testing Maintainer · Signal Technician · Signalman
Outlook and AI
Signal and track switch repairers held 8,700 jobs in 2025. BLS projects 8,900 by 2035 (+2%, little or no change; all jobs: +3.5%).
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