Highway Maintenance Workers
In short: today's best AI models could do about 0% of this job's working time (projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index) if the work were set up for them, and about the same by the end of 2028 if progress keeps its long-run pace. The conversations, in-person and hands-on work, about 100% of the time, stays with people.
Maintain highways, municipal and rural roads, airport runways, and rights-of-way. Duties include patching broken or eroded pavement and repairing guard rails, highway markers, and snow fences. May also mow or clear brush from along road, or plow snow from roadway.
154,960 people do this job in the US. $50,260 a year.
Reviewed on September 30, 2026: what each task is made of, and what handing it over would ask.
A typical 40-hour week
- AI could take on0 h
- A person checks AI's work0 h
- Desk work AI can't do yet0 h
- Stays with people40 h
Highway Maintenance Workers, now: of a 40-hour week, AI could take on 0 hours, 0 hours become checking its work, 0 hours are desk work it can't do yet, and 40 hours stay with people.
Estimates for a typical week of this job, if progress keeps its long-run pace, counting work the best models finish four times in five. Every task is below.
of the working time. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
- 0%
- 0%
- 0%
- 0%
- 100%
of the work: Anthropic's measure of what people already bring to Claude at work (2025). It counts help with part of a task, so it can be higher than the share within reach.
On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.
Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030
Change assumptionsHide assumptionsLong-run pace, four in five
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
At this date and pace, models finish tasks up to 2.4 work days long four times in five.
What handing it over would take, now
The 0% within reach splits by what a model would need. The dates, pace and reliability follow the controls above. Estimates.
of the working time. The material can be handed to a model and the result handed back.
of the working time. The model has to be connected to the system the work lives in.
is conversation short enough by length. This site leaves conversation with people, so it is not in the total.
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this job's working time was within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 0%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 0%. Today's estimate: 0%.
A backcast: today's task data with the best model METR had measured by each date. It shows how fast the models have moved, not what anyone forecast at the time.
Measured use over time
None of this job's 19 tasks showed up in the Claude.ai conversations Anthropic sampled in any of its 7 releases, from February 2025 to May 2026.
Measured, not estimated: Anthropic's samples of Claude.ai conversations, each tied by a model to an O*NET task, from the Anthropic Economic Index. It says where Claude's use goes, not how much of this job's working time it covers, so it is not on the same scale as the reach above. The releases differ in their sample, their classifier and the smallest share they report (the June 2026 file rounds each task to a hundredth of a percent, so a smaller task reads as none), which is why a change of method starts a new line. At least 96% of each older release's task-tied use matched this site's tasks, and all of the newest. Claude.ai only, so use through other tools and other companies' models is not in it. Every job ranked.
Robots and the physical work
Anthropic rates 100% of this job's working time as physical work. For 79% of the working time, a robot has been shown doing most of the task somewhere: 27% in a purpose-built cell, 45% in a structured facility, 7% in any setting. 1.38 of 3, the 31st highest of the 923 jobs.
- No robot shown 21%
- In a purpose-built cell 27%
- In a structured facility 45%
- In any setting 7%
Anthropic's rating, not this site's estimate: Claude Opus 5, searching the web, rated each physical O*NET task by the kind of setting in which a robot it could cite (deployed, sold or demonstrated) does most of the task, weighted by its own estimate of each task's share of the time (What work can robots do?, September 30, 2026, data CC BY 4.0; every job ranked). A robot shown somewhere is not a robot in your building: cost, setup and safety decide that. The share within reach on this page still counts no body work. The robot behind each rated task is under the task below.
What changes for the people in this job
From the task-by-task review, by the end of 2028 on the long-run pace at four in five. It says which parts of the work stay with people and which change, not whether anyone keeps a job: that depends on decisions no data set can see.
What stays with people
99% of the working time: the conversation, in-person and hands-on parts of the tasks.
- Drive sweepers, mowers and plows, the hands-on work, 22%
- Clear culverts and drains, the hands-on work, 10%
- Inspect and repair drains and bridges, the hands-on work, 10%
- Patch pavement with asphalt, the hands-on work, 10%
- Haul and spread fill, the hands-on work, 9%
- Install and repair guardrails and signals, the hands-on work, 6%
What becomes checking the machine
No desk work within reach by then in tasks where a mistake costs something.
What to learn
- The hands-on craft. About 100% of the time is hands-on work, which no model here does; robots are rated separately on this page.
- Judgment where errors are severe. Some tasks are severe if wrong. Knowing when not to trust an output matters more there than speed.
- Signing off under your license. Some tasks need a licensed, certified or sworn person to do or sign them. The license, and the judgment it stands for, stays with the person.
Your own version of this job: read it against your job description. The headline is free; the full personal report, every task with its timeline and what to learn, is $19 (a sample).
The tasks
Sorted by . 19 tasks from .
| Task | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drive heavy equipment and vehicles with adjustable attachments to sweep debris from paved surfaces, mow grass and weeds, remove snow and ice, and spread salt and sand.Driving heavy vehicles with attachments on the road.Done more than weekly by most who do it. Robots: in a structured facility, Yeti Move autonomy on Øveraasen RS 600 runway sweeper/plow machines (deployed). Anthropic's rating. | 22% | 2.5 h50 min to 5 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Clean and clear debris from culverts, catch basins, drop inlets, ditches, and other drain structures.Clearing drains by hand.Done daily by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Ovivo Brackett Bosker Automatic Raking Machine (automatic trash rake) (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 10% | 1.3 h25 min to 3.3 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Inspect, clean, and repair drainage systems, bridges, tunnels, and other structures.Inspection and repair of structures by hand.Done more than monthly by most who do it. Robots: no robot shown. Anthropic's rating. | 10% | 3.3 h50 min to 6.7 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Dump, spread, and tamp asphalt, using pneumatic tampers, to repair joints and patch broken pavement.Spreading and tamping hot asphalt on the road.Done daily by most who do it. Robots: no robot shown. Anthropic's rating. | 10% | 1.7 h38 min to 3.3 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Haul and spread sand, gravel, and clay to fill washouts and repair road shoulders.Hauling and spreading sand, gravel and clay.Done more than weekly by most who do it. Robots: in a structured facility, XCMG unmanned road construction fleet (autonomous pavers and tandem rollers, BeiDou-guided) (deployed). Anthropic's rating. | 9% | 2.5 h50 min to 5 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Erect, install, or repair guardrails, road shoulders, berms, highway markers, warning signals, and highway lighting, using hand tools and power tools.Hand and power tool work on rails, markers and lighting.Done daily by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, RPD 35 (Built Robotics) (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 6% | 2.5 h50 min to 5 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Set out signs and cones around work areas to divert traffic.Placing traffic control by hand on the road.Done daily by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, RoadBot 1 (Hong Kong Highways Department / Hong Kong Productivity Council) (demonstrated). Anthropic's rating. | 6% | 25 min17 min to 50 min | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Perform preventative maintenance on vehicles and heavy equipment.Preventive maintenance by hand.Done daily by most who do it. Robots: no robot shown. Anthropic's rating. | 6% | 1.3 h25 min to 2.5 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Drive trucks to transport crews and equipment to work sites.Driving the crew truck.Done daily by most who do it. Robots: in a structured facility, Cat MineStar Command for hauling (Caterpillar) (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 5% | 38 min17 min to 1.3 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Flag motorists to warn them of obstacles or repair work ahead.Flagging traffic at the work zone.Done daily by most who do it. Robots: in any setting, Portable/temporary traffic control signals (trailer- and pedestal-mounted, auto mode) (Multiple vendors (North America Traffic, Horizon Signal, Ver-Mac); guidance issued by NCDOT) (deployed). Anthropic's rating. | 4% | 25 min13 min to 1.3 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Perform roadside landscaping work, such as clearing weeds and brush, and planting and trimming trees.Clearing brush and trimming trees along the road.Done more than yearly by most who do it. Robots: in a structured facility, RC Mowers Autonomous Mowing Robot (AMR) (deployed). Anthropic's rating. | 4% | 2.5 h50 min to 5 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Measure and mark locations for installation of markers, using tape, string, or chalk.Marking with tape, string and chalk.Done more than yearly by most who do it.Robots: in any setting, TinyMobileRobots TinySurveyor Terra (deployed). Anthropic's rating. | 3% | 33 min13 min to 1.3 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
Within reach, per task: the share of the task's time whose instances are short enough for a model to finish at the chosen date, pace and reliability. Half by: the date half of that time comes within reach. Made of: how the task's time splits among five kinds of doing. Only the documents and systems parts can count as within reach, so a task that is 30% documents can be at most 30% within reach.
Jobs that share skills with this one
From O*NET's related occupations. Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five.
- Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators3% now, 3% by 2028
- Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators0% now, 0% by 2028
- Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators0% now, 0% by 2028
- Pile Driver Operators0% now, 0% by 2028
- Septic Tank Servicers and Sewer Pipe Cleaners6% now, 6% by 2028
- Construction Laborers1% now, 1% by 2028
Where this job works
The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025).
Where the most of these jobs are
The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025).
Questions about this job
- How much of the work of Highway Maintenance Workers is within reach of AI now?
- An estimated 0% of the working time is within reach of AI models now and 0% by the end of 2028, on METR's long-run pace at four in five. Within reach means a model could finish work that long at that reliability. It is not a forecast of jobs lost or of savings.
- Which tasks of Highway Maintenance Workers come within reach first?
- No task has a meaningful share of its time within reach now or by the end of 2028, on the long-run pace at four in five: the work is mostly people work and body work, which the site does not count.
- Which tasks of Highway Maintenance Workers stay with people?
- Tasks that are people work or body work are not counted as within reach at any date. The largest: Drive sweepers, mowers and plows; Clear culverts and drains; and Inspect and repair drains and bridges. Together such tasks are about 100% of the working time, and the people and body parts of the other tasks stay with people too.
- What should Highway Maintenance Workers learn as AI takes on more of the work?
- By the job's own task-by-task review, the first things to learn are the hands-on craft; judgment where errors are severe; and signing off under your license. By the end of 2028 on the long-run pace at four in five, about 99% of the working time stays with people, 0% becomes checking a model's work and 0% could be handed over with lighter checks. It says which parts of the work change, never whether anyone keeps a job.
- Do people already use AI for the work of Highway Maintenance Workers?
- In the Claude.ai conversations Anthropic sampled for May 2026, no reportable share went to this job's tasks. Anthropic's labor market measure puts the share of the job's tasks seen in real Claude use at work at 0%. These are measures of use, not of how much of the work AI could finish, and they cover Claude only.
- Can robots do the physical work of Highway Maintenance Workers?
- Anthropic's robot exposure rating (September 2026) finds 100% of the working time is physical work, and that a robot has been shown doing most of the task, somewhere, for 79% of the working time, 7% in any setting. Its index is 1.38 of 3. One example: Portable/temporary traffic control signals (trailer- and pedestal-mounted, auto mode) for "flag motorists". A robot shown somewhere is not one in every workplace; this site's own estimates still count no physical work as within reach.
- How is this estimated?
- From the 19 tasks O*NET lists for the occupation, each with an estimated length checked against GDPval and a share of the working time, reviewed one task at a time on September 30, 2026 for what each is made of (documents, business systems, conversation, in person, hands-on), and METR's measurements of how long a task the best AI models can finish, carried forward to the date from the latest, Claude Mythos Preview (early) in April 2026. Data checked November 10, 2026.
This job in your state or metro area
Embed these figures on your site
A small card with the share of working time within reach now and at the end of 2027, 2028 and 2030, the date and a link back. Free under CC BY 4.0; the card carries the credit.
Your own version of this job
The page above is the occupation. Your job is your title and what you actually do: give both, and they are read against these tasks in your browser, nothing sent anywhere. The headline is free: how much of your working time is within reach now and by the end of 2028, and how many of the tasks your description names.
The full personal report is $19, to print or save as a PDF: every task with when it comes within reach, which ones your description names, the parts of your description the task list does not cover, what stays with you, what becomes checking the machine and what to learn.