Description
Design and manage rail infrastructure projects, including track, signaling, stations, bridges, yards, and, where applicable, traction power, in accordance with AREMA, FRA, and state or federal standards. Prepare designs, specifications, and cost estimates for new rail facilities and upgrades. Plan and deliver modifications to existing rail corridors to improve capacity, safety, reliability, and speed.
- • Assess station, tunnel, and yard lighting for adequacy, energy use, and code compliance.
- • Present plans, drawings, and operational analyses at rail project public meetings or hearings.
- • Review development and utility plans for impacts to rail right-of-way, clearances, and operations.
- • Prepare technical and administrative reports on rail operations, incidents, reliability, and safety metrics.
- • Evaluate signal systems, interlockings, PTC, and grade crossing protections for upgrades or expansion needs.
- • Develop or adapt rail modeling tools, CAD standards, or data workflows to support design.
- • Prepare project scopes, budgets, schedules, and material specifications for track and systems work.
- • Produce final track alignment, profiles, and layout drawings with supporting calculations.
- • Plan curve realignments, turnout replacements, and platform modifications to enhance performance and safety.
- • Lead or support procurement, bidding, negotiations, and contract administration for rail projects.
- • Model timetables, headways, and capacity to test service changes and infrastructure alternatives.
- • Investigate delays, bottlenecks, and grade crossing issues and recommend corrective actions.
- • Test and qualify rail materials and components, such as rail steel, ties, fasteners, ballast, and overhead catenary system hardware.
- • Inspect constructed track, signals, and structures for compliance with FRA, AREMA, and project requirements.
- • Direct surveying, staking, and track geometry layout during construction.
- • Develop capital and life-cycle cost estimates for rail infrastructure and systems.
- • Coordinate with freight railroads, transit agencies, utilities, and regulators on plans and schedules.
- • Check designs, calculations, and estimates for accuracy and conformance to rail engineering standards.
- • Analyze environmental documents for rail projects, including noise, vibration, and wetlands impacts.
- • Oversee maintenance or rehabilitation programs for track, bridges, catenary, and signal systems.
- • Design new or upgraded rail lines, yards, stations, bridges, drainage, and, where applicable, traction power.
- • Design corridor drainage and erosion control for rail rights-of-way.
- • Incorporate sustainable materials and green infrastructure in stations and corridors where feasible.
- • Plan decommissioning or removal of obsolete track or facilities with environmentally sound practices.
- • Verify materials handling and treatments meet environmental regulations and permits.
- • Perform environmental compliance inspections for completed rail projects.
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O*NET occupational data (work activities, skills, knowledge).
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This site includes information from O*NET by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. Career Clutch has modified some of this information for student readability. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Last reviewed: Jan 2026
