Highway Maintenance Workers: Career Overview
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.
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What Tasks Do Highway Maintenance Workers Perform?
The day-to-day responsibilities of highway maintenance workers cover:
- Set out signs and cones around work areas to divert traffic.
- Flag motorists to warn them of obstacles or repair work ahead.
- Perform preventative maintenance on vehicles and heavy equipment.
- Drive trucks to transport crews and equipment to work sites.
- Erect, install, or repair guardrails, road shoulders, berms, highway markers, warning signals, and highway lighting, using hand tools and power tools.
- Clean and clear debris from culverts, catch basins, drop inlets, ditches, and other drain structures.
- 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.
- Haul and spread sand, gravel, and clay to fill washouts and repair road shoulders.
Key Skills and Knowledge
Effective highway maintenance workers combine a mix of skills and domain knowledge.
Most Important Skills
The competencies most central to this role, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:
Core Knowledge
Related Job Titles
People in this occupation may also be known by titles such as:
- Asphalt Raker
- Caltrans Equipment Operator
- Certified Flagger
- Construction Flagger
- Equipment Operator (EO)
- Flagger
- Highway Maintainer
- Highway Maintenance Crew Worker
How Many Highway Maintenance Workers Are There?
There are about 108,425 highway maintenance workers working in the United States today. This occupation is expected to grow by +5.1% over the projection horizon.
Highway Maintenance Workers Pay
| Statistic | Value |
|---|---|
| Annual median | $48,880 |
| Hourly median | $23.50 |
| 10th percentile | $32,314 |
| 25th percentile | $40,597 |
| 75th percentile | $57,163 |
| 90th percentile | $65,447 |
Pay can vary substantially based on experience, location, and industry.
Pay by State
| State | Annual median salary |
|---|---|
| Connecticut | $63,770 |
| Washington | $63,420 |
| Oregon | $62,990 |
| Alaska | $61,910 |
| Minnesota | $60,900 |
| North Dakota | $60,830 |
| Montana | $60,730 |
| Massachusetts | $59,240 |
| California | $58,300 |
| Illinois | $58,130 |
| Iowa | $56,800 |
| Colorado | $56,440 |
| Vermont | $56,420 |
| Wisconsin | $54,780 |
| Maryland | $54,300 |
| Rhode Island | $54,080 |
| Utah | $52,470 |
| New York | $52,010 |
| New Jersey | $50,700 |
| Michigan | $49,600 |
| Idaho | $49,440 |
| Virginia | $49,360 |
| New Hampshire | $49,200 |
| Wyoming | $48,590 |
| Indiana | $48,570 |
| Ohio | $47,990 |
| Arizona | $47,770 |
| Pennsylvania | $47,680 |
| South Dakota | $47,650 |
| Maine | $47,380 |
| Nebraska | $47,080 |
| Tennessee | $47,000 |
| Nevada | $46,300 |
| Missouri | $46,280 |
| New Mexico | $46,250 |
| West Virginia | $45,310 |
| Kansas | $45,170 |
| North Carolina | $43,760 |
| Texas | $42,180 |
| Delaware | $40,380 |
| Louisiana | $40,020 |
| Florida | $39,390 |
| Oklahoma | $38,780 |
| Arkansas | $38,070 |
| South Carolina | $38,000 |
| Georgia | $37,120 |
| Kentucky | $36,900 |
| Alabama | $36,050 |
| Mississippi | $34,090 |
| Puerto Rico | $19,760 |
Top-Paying U.S. Regions
Compensation for highway maintenance workers vary by region. Top regions by median wage:
| Region | Median annual wage | Share of U.S. jobs | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Far Western US | $59,009 | 8.5% | 0.57 |
| New England | $56,118 | 5.3% | 1.63 |
| Rocky Mountains | $53,952 | 4.0% | 1.33 |
| Great Lakes | $53,083 | 20.1% | 1.53 |
| Plains States | $51,886 | 14.0% | 2.28 |
| Middle Atlantic | $50,272 | 20.7% | 1.59 |
| Southwest | $42,513 | 8.2% | 0.89 |
| Southeast | $40,530 | 17.2% | 1.19 |
Highest-Paying Metro Areas for Highway Maintenance Workers
| Metro area | State | Median annual wage | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | CA | $76,980 | 350 |
| Vallejo, CA | CA | $74,970 | 80 |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA | CA | $74,720 | 90 |
| Kankakee, IL | IL | $71,150 | 100 |
| Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard, WA | WA | $69,060 | 90 |
| Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA | WA | $69,060 | 100 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | WA | $68,810 | 770 |
| Salinas, CA | CA | $67,760 | 130 |
Which Industries Hire Highway Maintenance Workers
Most highway maintenance workers are concentrated in the following sectors:
| Industry | Employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Construction | 5,210 | $45,650 |
The table below shows some of the most common industries where those employed in this career field work.
Software Highway Maintenance Workers Use
- Spreadsheet software: Microsoft Excel (hot technology)
- Office suite software: Microsoft Office software (hot technology)
- Electronic mail software: Microsoft Outlook (hot technology)
- Presentation software: Microsoft PowerPoint (hot technology)
- Word processing software: Microsoft Word (hot technology)
Work Environment
Daily working conditions for highway maintenance workers reflects the following characteristics:
- Outdoors, Exposed to All Weather Conditions
- Wear Common Protective or Safety Equipment such as Safety Shoes, Glasses, Gloves, Hearing Protection, Hard Hats, or Life Jackets
- Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams
- Exposed to Contaminants
- Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team
Education and Training
Most highway maintenance workers positions require a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education. This career aligns with Some Preparation Needed (Job Zone 2), indicating the level of preparation typically expected.
Related Careers
Similar Occupations
- Transportation Engineers (Supplemental)
- Construction Laborers (Primary-Long)
- Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators (Primary-Short)
- Pile Driver Operators (Primary-Short)
- Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators (Primary-Short)
- Helpers–Electricians (Supplemental)
- Hazardous Materials Removal Workers (Supplemental)
- Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators (Primary-Short)
Top Programs to Study For This Career
Aspiring highway maintenance workers often complete programs in:
Transportation and Materials Moving
2 programs across 1 majors
About the Data
Statistics shown above are sourced from the following authoritative sources:
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) for employment and wage data by state and industry.
- BLS Employment Projections for total employment and growth forecasts.
- O*NET (Occupational Information Network) for skills, knowledge, tasks, work activities, work context, technology, and education-zone data.
SOC code: 47-4051.00 (Highway Maintenance Workers).
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