Road maintenance worker

Road maintenance workers perform routine inspections of roads, and are sent out to perform repairs when called for. They patch potholes, cracks and other damage in roads.

The duties of a road maintenance worker include, but are not limited to:

• Repair broken roads on highway, town, and city roads.
• Patch potholes.
• Operate machinery to dig up holes, pour concrete, and smooth out.
• Repair detached or dented guardrails.
• Set up cones and signs to alert motorists.
• Plow snow.
• Clear off debris.
• Mow or clear brush from roads.
• Paint dividing lines between traffic lanes.
• Lay asphalt.
• Remove trees from roads.
• Use a salt truck to salt roads after snowstorms.
• Operate motor graders, brooms, loaders, backhoes, skidsteers, tractors, mowers, dump trucks, or similar equipment.
• Patrol roads for hazard, snow/ice conditions and maintenance/repair needs.
• Place stop signs and speed limit signs along road.
• Remove road kill.
• Fill road washouts and clean storm drains.
• Inspect and maintain operating equipment.
• Install and clean culverts.
• Flag traffic to form a detour around construction.
• Change vehicle fluids, including greases and oils.

A road maintenance worker will usually operate as a member of a team, and older and more experienced employees will train the new employees on the more specific aspects of the job.

Road maintenance workers will usually be outside on the highway itself and therefore must be in good health and prepared to work irregular hours. Maintenance employees will have to work in rain, sleet, snow, heavy winds, and heat waves, as they must correct any problems to the highways that extreme weather may create. They sometimes have to work overnight in order to keep the flow of traffic free for morning and afternoon commuters and rush hour traffic.

The following job titles also refer to road maintenance worker:

road maintenance team member
highway maintenance worker
road maintenance operative
highways operative

Although no formal educational credential is required to work as a road maintenance worker, many employers prefer candidates with a high school diploma.

ISCO skill level is defined as a function of the complexity and range of tasks and duties to be performed in an occupation. It is measured on a scale from 1 to 4, with 1 the lowest level and 4 the highest, by considering:

• the nature of the work performed in an occupation in relation to the characteristic tasks and duties
• the level of formal education required for competent performance of the tasks and duties involved and
• the amount of informal on-the-job training and/or previous experience in a related occupation required for competent performance of these tasks and duties.

Road maintenance worker is a Skill level 1 occupation.

These occupations, although different, require a lot of knowledge and skills similar to road maintenance worker.

road marker
road sign installer
civil engineering worker
rail layer
drainage worker

These occupations require some skills and knowledge of road maintenance worker. They also require other skills and knowledge, but at a higher ISCO skill level, meaning these occupations are accessible from a position of road maintenance worker with a significant experience and/or extensive training.

road construction worker
rigger
tower crane operator
pile driving hammer operator
terrazzo setter

This knowledge should be acquired through learning to fulfill the role of road maintenance worker.

• Types of asphalt coverings: Different types of asphalt covering, based on their bitumen content and composition. The strengths, weaknesses, and price points of each type. Special properties such as porosity, resistance to skidding and noise characteristics.
• Mechanical tools: Understand machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
• Asphalt mixes: The properties, advantages and disadvantages of asphalt mixes such as Marshall and Superpave mixes and the way they are best applied.

These skills are necessary for the role of road maintenance worker.

• Remove road surface: Remove an existing road surface. Use the appropriate machinery or coordinate with machine operators to assist in the excavation of asphalt or concrete road coverings.
• Work ergonomically: Apply ergonomy principles in the organisation of the workplace while manually handling equipment and materials.
• Work safely with hot materials: Take care when handling hot materials. Wear the right protective clothing and take care not to burn yourself or others, damage equipment, or create fire hazards.
• Transport construction supplies: Bring construction materials, tools and equipment to the construction site and store them properly taking various aspects into account such as the workers’ safety and protection from deterioration.
• Inspect construction supplies: Check construction supplies for damage, moisture, loss or other problems before using the material.
• Perform traffic sign maintenance: Install and secure road signs, and replace them if needed. Maintain traffic lights by resolving issues, replacing light bulbs and cleaning the glass covering. Control telematic systems for proper functioning.
• Follow health and safety procedures in construction: Apply the relevant health and safety procedures in construction in order to prevent accidents, pollution and other risks.
• Inspect asphalt: Inspect the placement of asphalt concrete ensuring that the specifications are met and no flows are present.
• Use safety equipment in construction: Use elements of protective clothing such as steel-tipped shoes, and gear such as protective goggles, in order to minimise risk of accidents in construction and to mitigate any injury if an accident does occur.
• Guide operation of heavy construction equipment: Guide a colleague in operating a piece of heavy construction equipment. Follow the operation closely and understand when feedback is called for. Use communication techniques like voice, two-way radio, agreed-upon gestures and whistles to signal the appropriate information to the operator.
• Pave asphalt layers: Use different grades of asphalt to lay the asphalt layers of a road. Lay an asphalt base layer with low bitumen content to provide a stable surface, a binder layer with intermediate bitumen content, and a surface layer containing the highest grade material with the highest bitumen content to withstand the stresses of road transport. Tend a paver to lay the asphalt or use different techniques and instruments.
• Inspect road signs: Inspect road signs for signs of corrosion, outdated information, nicks and dents, legilibility and reflectance. Decide on the course of action when problems are found.

This knowledge is sometimes, but not always, required for the role of road maintenance worker. However, mastering this knowledge allows you to have more opportunities for career development.

• Road signage standards: National and European regulations on the placement and properties of road signage, including size, height, reflectance and other important characteristics.

These skills and competences are sometimes, but not always, required for the role of road maintenance worker. However, mastering these skills and competences allows you to have more opportunities for career development.

• Lay base courses: Lay the stabilising courses that support a road. Lay the road base, which enhances the drainage properties of the road, and a sub-base if called for. Use the correct material for this, usually a mix of aggregates or local secondary materials, sometimes with some binding agents added.
• Apply proofing membranes: Apply specialised membranes to prevent penetration of a structure by dampness or water. Securely seal any perforation to preserve the damp-proof or waterproof properties of the membrane. Make sure any membranes overlap top over bottom to prevent water from seeping in. Check the compatibility of multiple membranes used together.
• Provide first aid: Administer cardiopulmonary resuscitation or first aid in order to provide help to a sick or injured person until they receive more complete medical treatment.
• Carry out de-icing activities: Spread salt or other chemical products on the ice-covered surface in public spaces to ensure de-icing and safe usage of such spaces.
• Paint with a paint gun: Use a paint gun to coat or paint surfaces of items which are stationary or moving on a conveyor belt. Load the equipment with the suitable type of paint and spray the paint onto the surface in an even and controlled manner to prevent paint from dripping or splashing.
• Work in a construction team: Work as part of a team in a construction project. Communicate efficiently, sharing information with team members and reporting to supervisors. Follow instructions and adapt to changes in a flexible manner.
• Maintain equipment: Regularly inspect and perform all required activities to maintain the equipment in functional order prior or after its use.
• Inspect drainage channels: Maintain and clear gutters, sewer systems, and other water carrying facilities to ensure proper drainage and prevent damage to infrastructure such as roads and railways.
• Place temporary road signage: Place temporary traffic signs, lights and barriers to alert road users of activities on the road.
• Use gardening equipment: Use gardening equipment such as clippers, sprayers, mowers, chainsaws, complying to health and safety regulations.
• Keep personal administration: File and organise personal administration documents comprehensively.
• Perform minor repairs to equipment: Conduct routine maintenance on equipment. Recognise and identify minor defects in equipment and make repairs if appropriate.
• Lay concrete slabs: Lay concrete slabs, used as road covering, on a prepared surface. Guide a crane operator to position the slab in the right place and manually set it correctly, often using tongue and groove joints.
• Keep records of work progress: Maintain records of the progress of the work including time, defects, malfunctions, etc.
• Maintain landscape site: Maintain the site by mowing, applying fertiliser, controlling weed, aerating, trimming and pruning. Perform clean-ups according to needs and requirements.
• Clear accident site: Remove large objects such as a damaged vehicles, clear debris and dispose of it in compliance with legislation, clean the place and remove temporary traffic signs.

9312 – Civil engineering labourers

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References

1. ESCO
2. Highway Maintenance Worker Job Description | LocalJobNetwork.com
3. What does a highway maintenance worker do? – CareerExplorer
4. Featured image: By Robbie Johnson – Own work (Original text: I created this work entirely by myself.), Public Domain