Transportation and Material Moving Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages O*NET task lead SOC 53-4022

Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers

O*NET task statements lead this Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers card before OEWS pay; neighboring titles include Commercial Pilots, Rail Yard Engineers, Dinkey Operators, and Hostlers, Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers, Wellhead Pumpers.

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers: Commercial Pilots ($123K) , Rail Yard Engineers, Dinkey Operators, and Hostlers ($61K) , Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers ($62K) , Wellhead Pumpers ($70K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 53-4022 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Observe train signals along routes and verify their meanings for engineers
  2. 2. Signal locomotive engineers to start or stop trains when coupling or uncoupling cars, using hand signals, lanterns, or radio communication
  3. 3. Operate and drive locomotives, diesel switch engines, dinkey engines, flatcars, and railcars in train yards and at industrial sites
  4. 4. Pull or push track switches to reroute cars
  5. 5. Observe signals from other crew members so that work activities can be coordinated
  6. 6. Monitor trains as they go around curves to detect dragging equipment and smoking journal boxes
  7. 7. Inspect couplings, air hoses, journal boxes, and handbrakes to ensure that they are securely fastened and functioning properly
  8. 8. Observe tracks from left sides of locomotives to detect obstructions on tracks
  9. 9. Operate locomotives in emergency situations
  10. 10. Raise levers to couple and uncouple cars for makeup and breakup of trains
  11. 11. Climb ladders to tops of cars to set brakes
  12. 12. Receive oral or written instructions from yardmasters or yard conductors indicating track assignments and cars to be switched

Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers: O*NET ranks Monitoring first

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 53-4022 - lead skill Monitoring at 3.5 ; lead knowledge Transportation. Sibling cards diverge here even when peer titles overlap.

Top skills

  1. 1. Monitoring 3.5
  2. 2. Operations Monitoring 3.4
  3. 3. Active Listening 3.3
  4. 4. Critical Thinking 3.3
  5. 5. Operation and Control 3.3
  6. 6. Reading Comprehension 3.1
  7. 7. Social Perceptiveness 3.0
  8. 8. Coordination 3.0

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. Transportation 3.9
  2. 2. Public Safety and Security 3.5
  3. 3. Mechanical 3.3
  4. 4. English Language 3.2
  5. 5. Customer and Personal Service 2.8
  6. 6. Law and Government 2.6
National median after O*NET task lead
$68,840
/year · 12 published task lines above
Lead task: Observe train signals along routes and verify their meanings for engineers
$69K
National median
↑ +1%
Growth 2024-2034
1,000
Annual openings
12,400
Estimated US jobs
Commercial Pilots
Highest-pay peer · $123K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education High school diploma or equivalent

Top Paying States for Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers

1. Washington $85,140
2. Texas $71,580
3. Colorado $76,140
4. Maryland $79,180
5. New Mexico $72,340
6. Illinois $76,290
7. New Jersey $74,160
8. New York $83,530
9. Georgia $75,540
10. Iowa $80,910

Other Transportation and Material Moving Occupations titles

  1. 1. Commercial Pilots $123,220
  2. 2. Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers $61,770
  3. 3. Rail Yard Engineers, Dinkey Operators, and Hostlers $60,600
  4. 4. Wellhead Pumpers $69,960
  5. 5. First-Line Supervisors of Transportation and Material Moving Workers, Except Aircraft Cargo Handling Supervisors $62,890
  6. 6. Transportation Inspectors $92,100

O*NET publishes 12 leading task statements for Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers (SOC 53-4022). The national OEWS median is $68,840 inside Transportation and Material Moving Occupations. Same-group neighbors: Commercial Pilots, Rail Yard Engineers, Dinkey Operators, and Hostlers, Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers, Wellhead Pumpers. Lead published task: Observe train signals along routes and verify their meanings for engineers.

Employment Projections expect +1% change between 2024 and 2034 (slower than average vs baseline 3.1%). About 1,000 annual openings are projected. BLS assigns High school diploma or equivalent as typical education needed for entry. These are occupation-level assignments, not universal requirements. BLS does not publish a separate occupation-specific safety rate for this role; its broad SOC-group rate is excluded from this career card's grade.

Highest published state median in this ranking: Washington at $85,140. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: Commercial Pilots at $123,220. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers pay-rank #12 in Transportation and Material Moving Occupations

Among 50 detailed Transportation and Material Moving Occupations with a published OEWS median, Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers is pay-rank #12, the upper third of that major group. The order is ROW_NUMBER on national median (title as tiebreak), not a worker-level percentile.

Other upper-third titles · closest medians

Full Salary Details Compare this role

Data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Projections from BLS Employment Projections program, 2024-2034.

SOC 53-4022 · national median $68,840 · upper third of Transportation and Material Moving Occupations (#12/50). Open the full OEWS map or a named state before treating the card median as a local ask.

Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers salary map

State, metro, and percentile for SOC 53-4022

Washington · top state for Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers

$85K published median

Texas · #2 state pay

$72K · behind Washington

Commercial Pilots

Highest-pay peer vs Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers · $123K

Rail Yard Engineers, Dinkey Operators, and Hostlers

Lower-pay peer beside Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers · $61K

Compare Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers

Head-to-head OEWS medians with another SOC
Compare Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers with another occupation →

Role and task next reads

Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers full salary map

State and metro OEWS after the task lead

Compare tasks and pay

Side-by-side with another occupation

Frequently Asked Questions

Which Transportation and Material Moving Occupations titles sit near Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers at the top of the pay table? ▼
Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers is pay-rank #12 of 50 detailed Transportation and Material Moving Occupations with an OEWS median, upper third. Nearest upper-third titles: Crane and Tower Operators ($68K), Wellhead Pumpers ($70K), Flight Attendants ($64K), First-Line Supervisors of Transportation and Material Moving Workers, Except Aircraft Cargo Handling Supervisors ($63K). Rank is ROW_NUMBER on national median.
What do railroad brake, signal, and switch operators and locomotive firers do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers. Leading ones include: Observe train signals along routes and verify their meanings for engineers; Signal locomotive engineers to start or stop trains when coupling or uncoupling cars, using hand signals, lanterns, or radio communication; Operate and drive locomotives, diesel switch engines, dinkey engines, flatcars, and railcars in train yards and at industrial sites; Pull or push track switches to reroute cars. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for railroad brake, signal, and switch operators and locomotive firers? ▼
For SOC 53-4022, O*NET importance scores lead with Monitoring (3.5), Operations Monitoring (3.4), Active Listening (3.3), Critical Thinking (3.3). Knowledge areas emphasize Transportation, Public Safety and Security, Mechanical. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
What is the OEWS national median for Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers? ▼
May 2025 OEWS reports $68,840 as the national median for Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers. The published 10th-90th range is $45,660 to $86,590. Beside Commercial Pilots ($123,220), this is the occupation-level national figure, not a local offer.
What employment change does BLS publish for Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers? ▼
The 2024-2034 projection for Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers is +1%. Projected annual openings: about 1,000. Relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%: slower than average.
What typical entry education does BLS assign to Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers? ▼
BLS assigns High school diploma or equivalent as the typical-education-needed-for-entry category for Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers. These are occupation-level labels, not every employer's hiring rule.
Which three states show the highest OEWS medians for Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers? ▼
Washington ($85,140), Texas ($71,580), Colorado ($76,140) lead this ranking. The table does not identify why those state estimates differ.

Source data and WageDex calculations are identified in context on this page. Wage and state figures use BLS OEWS May 2025; growth and education use BLS Employment Projections for 2024-2034; safety fields cite BLS CFOI/SOII; task statements cite O*NET where shown. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

Disclaimer: Wage and outlook figures on this page are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute career, financial, or salary-negotiation advice. Actual pay varies by employer, experience, and local conditions; consult a career counselor or the hiring employer for guidance specific to your situation.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES Occupational wage estimates by area and industry · 2025

Federal sources on this Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers card
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - national median and percentiles for SOC 53-4022. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - task and skill statements for Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers. onetcenter.org
  • BLS Employment Projections - 2024-2034 change and openings for this occupation. bls.gov/emp
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - demographic and labor-force context for state and metro geography. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • IRS Statistics of Income (SOI) - payroll-tax aggregate context for wage comparisons. irs.gov/statistics