Highway Maintenance Workers

Typical tasks

From O*NET 31.0. Core tasks first. Few of these tasks have a benchmark today.

• 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.
• Inspect, clean, and repair drainage systems, bridges, tunnels, and other structures.
• Remove litter and debris from roadways, including debris from rock and mud slides.
• Dump, spread, and tamp asphalt, using pneumatic tampers, to repair joints and patch broken pavement.
• Perform roadside landscaping work, such as clearing weeds and brush, and planting and trimming trees.