Skilled Trades
Highway Maintenance Workers
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.
Median salary
$49,070
Typical range
$35k – $69k
Job outlook
+3% (about average)
AI exposure
Plan a path to Highway Maintenance Workers
Education
Typical entry: No degree required
Plan my path to this →Typical progression
Junior Highway Maintenance Workers
Entry / Junior
$35,030
~2 yrs to advance
Highway Maintenance Workers
Established
$49,070
~3 yrs to advance
Senior Highway Maintenance Workers
Senior
$59,140
Key skills
A typical day
- •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.
Fields of study
Any field
Top colleges for Skilled Trades
Explore all- Purdue University50% admit · $78,000 grad pay
- Ohio State University53% admit · $68,000 grad pay
- Pennsylvania State University55% admit · $70,000 grad pay
Reputation-based selection; stats shown are outcome data per school.