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Signal maintainer vs railroad signal technician

The differences between signal maintainers and railroad signal technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a signal maintainer and a railroad signal technician. Additionally, a signal maintainer has an average salary of $54,117, which is higher than the $50,367 average annual salary of a railroad signal technician.

The top three skills for a signal maintainer include switches, signal systems and signal equipment. The most important skills for a railroad signal technician are FRA, CDL, and DOT.

Signal maintainer vs railroad signal technician overview

Signal MaintainerRailroad Signal Technician
Yearly salary$54,117$50,367
Hourly rate$26.02$24.21
Growth rate10%10%
Number of jobs1,9276,359
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeAssociate Degree, 39%High School Diploma, 41%
Average age4343
Years of experience44

Signal maintainer vs railroad signal technician salary

Signal maintainers and railroad signal technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

Signal MaintainerRailroad Signal Technician
Average salary$54,117$50,367
Salary rangeBetween $30,000 And $97,000Between $25,000 And $98,000
Highest paying City--
Highest paying state--
Best paying company--
Best paying industry--

Differences between signal maintainer and railroad signal technician education

There are a few differences between a signal maintainer and a railroad signal technician in terms of educational background:

Signal MaintainerRailroad Signal Technician
Most common degreeAssociate Degree, 39%High School Diploma, 41%
Most common majorElectrical EngineeringElectrical Engineering Technology
Most common collegeStanford UniversityDunwoody College of Technology

Signal maintainer vs railroad signal technician demographics

Here are the differences between signal maintainers' and railroad signal technicians' demographics:

Signal MaintainerRailroad Signal Technician
Average age4343
Gender ratioMale, 93.6% Female, 6.4%Male, 94.4% Female, 5.6%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 9.7% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 15.6% Asian, 3.2% White, 65.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%Black or African American, 6.7% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 16.5% Asian, 2.4% White, 68.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%
LGBT Percentage4%4%

Differences between signal maintainer and railroad signal technician duties and responsibilities

Signal maintainer example responsibilities.

  • Used UNIX base analysis systems to accomplish all tasks.
  • Lead, manage, and mentore the signal gang leadership team.
  • Develop and mentore 3employees to perform COMSEC custodian duties.
  • Maintain and inspect railroad crossings and signals, crossing programming, stay FRA compliant
  • Map out routines and used onboard GPS configure laptop computer to trace signals.
  • Carry out all kinds of electrical repair, HVAC, carpentry, painting and janitorial duties.
  • Show more

Railroad signal technician example responsibilities.

  • Used UNIX base analysis systems to accomplish all tasks.
  • Maintain and repair circuit breakers on systems up to 35000 VAC and 1000VDC.
  • Perform collection, identification and signals analysis of all communications activity in support of critical DoD missions.
  • Monitor system for signal leakage using GPS technology, including the generation of all reports necessary to maintain FCC compliance.

Signal maintainer vs railroad signal technician skills

Common signal maintainer skills
  • Switches, 13%
  • Signal Systems, 13%
  • Signal Equipment, 12%
  • FRA, 11%
  • Warning Devices, 8%
  • Ac, 5%
Common railroad signal technician skills
  • FRA, 70%
  • CDL, 16%
  • DOT, 13%

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