Railroad Conductors and Yardmasters
Coordinate activities of switch-engine crew within railroad yard, industrial plant, or similar location. Conductors coordinate activities of train crew on passenger or freight trains. Yardmasters review train schedules and switching orders and coordinate activities of workers engaged in railroad traffic operations, such as the makeup or breakup of trains and yard switching.
46,440 people do this job in the US. $78,000 a year.
of the working time. Estimate.
- 33%
- 2%
- 65%
Measured, from Anthropic's usage data (2025). Counts help on part of a task.
On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.
Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
At this date and pace, models finish tasks up to 4.4 h long four times in five.
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, 3%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 31%. Today's estimate: 32%.
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.
The tasks
Sorted by . 20 tasks from .
| Task | Kind | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Direct engineers to move cars to fit planned train configurations, combining or separating cars to make up or break up trains.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 20% | 50 min17 min to 1.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Direct and instruct workers engaged in yard activities, such as switching tracks, coupling and uncoupling cars, and routing inbound and outbound traffic.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 14% | 38 min13 min to 1.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Supervise and coordinate crew activities to transport freight and passengers and to provide boarding, porter, maid, and meal services to passengers.Done daily by most who do it. | 11% | 1.3 h25 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Review schedules, switching orders, way bills, and shipping records to obtain cargo loading and unloading information and to plan work.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 10% | 25 min13 min to 1.3 h | 100%Half by now | |
| 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.Done daily by most who do it. | 8% | 33 min13 min to 1.7 h | 97%Half by now | |
| Inspect freight cars for compliance with sealing procedures, and record car numbers and seal numbers.Done daily by most who do it. | 5% | 33 min13 min to 1.1 h | Stays with people | |
| Observe yard traffic to determine tracks available to accommodate inbound and outbound traffic.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 5% | 17 min8 min to 38 min | Stays with people | |
| Supervise workers in the inspection and maintenance of mechanical equipment to ensure efficient and safe train operation.Done daily by most who do it. | 5% | 50 min17 min to 1.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Document and prepare reports of accidents, unscheduled stops, or delays.Done daily by most who do it. | 4% | 1.3 h25 min to 2.5 h | 87%Half by now | |
| Confirm routes and destination information for freight cars.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 4% | 13 min4 min to 25 min | 100%Half by now | |
| Arrange for the removal of defective cars from trains at stations or stops.Done daily by most who do it. | 3% | 21 min8 min to 50 min | 100%Half by now | |
| Inspect each car periodically during runs.Done daily by most who do it. | 2% | 25 min8 min to 50 min | 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.
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.
- Locomotive Engineers3% now, 3% by 2028
- Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers7% now, 7% by 2028
- Rail Yard Engineers, Dinkey Operators, and Hostlers12% now, 12% by 2028
- Subway and Streetcar Operators4% now, 4% by 2028
- Dispatchers, Except Police, Fire, and Ambulance80% now, 94% by 2028
- First-Line Supervisors of Material-Moving Machine and Vehicle Operators51% now, 57% 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).