CareerZone Pennsylvania

Railroad Conductors and Yardmasters

Description

Conductors coordinate activities of train crew on passenger or freight train. Coordinate activities of switch-engine crew within yard of railroad, industrial plant, or similar location. Yardmasters coordinate activities of workers engaged in railroad traffic operations, such as the makeup or breakup of trains, yard switching, and review train schedules and switching orders.

Job Zone

Job Zone Two: Some Preparation Needed

These occupations usually require a high school diploma and may require some vocational training or job-related course work. In some cases, an associate's or bachelor's degree could be needed.

Education Requirements

Related work experience - Training is gained through hands-on work and experience in a similar occupation.

Interests

Realistic: Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.

Knowledge

Customer and Personal Service	Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Public Safety and Security	Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Transportation	Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.

Skills

Writing	Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
Learning Strategies	Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
Troubleshooting	Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it.
Operation Monitoring	Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
Active Learning	Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
Time Management	Managing one's own time and the time of others.
Instructing	Teaching others how to do something.
Speaking	Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Judgment and Decision Making	Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Critical Thinking	Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

Tasks

• Supervise and coordinate crew activities to transport freight and passengers and to provide boarding, porter, maid, and meal services to passengers.
• Supervise workers in the inspection and maintenance of mechanical equipment in order to ensure efficient and safe train operation.
• Record departure and arrival times, messages, tickets and revenue collected, and passenger accommodations and destinations.
• Inspect freight cars for compliance with sealing procedures, and record car numbers and seal numbers.
• Collect tickets, fares, or passes from passengers.
• Verify accuracy of timekeeping instruments with engineers to ensure trains depart on time.
• Instruct workers to regulate air-conditioning, lighting, and heating in passenger cars in order to ensure passengers' comfort.
• Signal engineers to begin train runs, stop trains, or change speed, using telecommunications equipment or hand signals.
• Receive information regarding train or rail problems from dispatchers or from electronic monitoring devices.
• Direct and instruct workers engaged in yard activities, such as switching tracks, coupling and uncoupling cars, and routing inbound and outbound traffic.
• Keep records of the contents and destination of each train car, and make sure that cars are added or removed at proper points on routes.
• Operate controls to activate track switches and traffic signals.
• Instruct workers to set warning signals in front and at rear of trains during emergency stops.
• Direct engineers to move cars to fit planned train configurations, combining or separating cars to make up or break up trains.
• Receive instructions from dispatchers regarding trains' routes, timetables, and cargoes.

Wages

Data not available

Outlook

Data not available

Colleges and Training

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AES EducationPlanner, PA Dept of Labor, PA Career Link, college.gov, and College Navigator

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