jobfacts

Rail transport operatives

SOC 2020 8234

Rail transport operatives assist drivers in the operation of passenger and goods trains, drive locomotive engines in coal mines, guide wagons and coaches in marshalling yards and sidings to make up trains, operate signals and points to control the movement of rail traffic, and monitor the operation of surface and underground railways.

Also calledRailway signallerPoints operatorSignal operatorControllerPoint attendantGate keeperand 99 more titles
Typical full-time pay£57,1002025 Provisional
People in the job14,000across the UK
Demand for workersElevated
New adverts a month247↑ 25%on last year · 328th of 412

Pay

ONS · ASHE 2025

Half of full-time rail transport operatives earn between £42,800 and £72,200 a year.

What full-time rail transport operatives earn, 2025
£57,100 typical£32,900lowest 10%£42,80025%£72,20075%n/ptop 10%
Middle half (£42,800–£72,200)n/p: top 10% not published by ONS
Show as table
Lowest 10% earn less than£32,900
Lowest 20% earn less than£41,800
25%£42,800
Median£57,100
75%£72,200
Top 20% earn more thanNot published
Top 10% earn more thanNot published
Typical pay by regionUK median £57,100
South East!£69,200
London!£63,800
West Midlands!£63,800
North East!£61,500
Yorkshire and The Humber!£54,200
North West!£53,100
East MidlandsNot published by ONS–
East of EnglandNot published by ONS–
South WestNot published by ONS–
ScotlandNot published by ONS–
WalesNot published by ONS–
!Small sample: treat with caution
Show as table
UK median, £57,100
South East£69,200 (small sample)
London£63,800 (small sample)
West Midlands£63,800 (small sample)
North East£61,500 (small sample)
Yorkshire and The Humber£54,200 (small sample)
North West£53,100 (small sample)
East MidlandsNot published by ONS
East of EnglandNot published by ONS
South WestNot published by ONS
ScotlandNot published by ONS
WalesNot published by ONS
Typical pay over 3 years
  • 2023 £50,200
  • 2024 £53,100
  • 2025 Provisional£57,100
↑ 14% since 2023Provisional figures are revised when ONS publishes the next year’s survey.

Jobs and demand

ONS · Textkernel adverts · DfE

About 247 jobs for rail transport operatives are advertised each month. The Department for Education rates demand for workers as elevated.

New job adverts a month, Jan 2017 to Aug 2026
New advertsMonth not published by ONS (1 in all)
Show as table
Aug 2026264
Jul 2026280
Jun 2026365
May 2026471
Apr 2026185
Mar 2026Not published
Feb 2026152
Jan 2026202
Dec 202591
Nov 2025243
Oct 2025239
Sept 2025223
Aug 2025212
Jul 2025238
Jun 2025206
May 2025220
Apr 2025156
Mar 2025203
Feb 2025208
Jan 2025161
Dec 2024104
Nov 2024186
Oct 2024239
Sept 2024251
Aug 2024313
Jul 2024272
Jun 2024245
May 2024219
Apr 2024242
Mar 2024186
Feb 2024155
Jan 2024207
Dec 2023153
Nov 2023162
Oct 2023232
Sept 2023218
Aug 2023227
Jul 2023220
Jun 2023334
May 2023261
Apr 2023286
Mar 2023279
Feb 2023257
Jan 2023266
Dec 2022218
Nov 2022329
Oct 2022343
Sept 2022323
Aug 2022296
Jul 2022334
Jun 2022341
May 2022327
Apr 2022301
Mar 2022407
Feb 2022254
Jan 2022347
Dec 2021250
Nov 2021282
Oct 2021307
Sept 2021297
Aug 2021290
Jul 2021310
Jun 2021258
May 2021258
Apr 2021214
Mar 2021321
Feb 2021192
Jan 2021218
Dec 2020189
Nov 2020199
Oct 2020256
Sept 2020249
Aug 2020273
Jul 2020245
Jun 2020160
May 2020157
Apr 2020185
Mar 2020271
Feb 2020294
Jan 2020293
Dec 2019192
Nov 2019247
Oct 2019291
Sept 2019238
Aug 2019243
Jul 2019322
Jun 2019240
May 2019323
Apr 2019155
Mar 2019243
Feb 2019234
Jan 2019269
Dec 2018178
Nov 2018169
Oct 2018242
Sept 2018227
Aug 2018256
Jul 2018233
Jun 2018267
May 2018278
Apr 2018243
Mar 2018265
Feb 2018361
Jan 2018254
Dec 2017185
Nov 2017310
Oct 2017310
Sept 2017308
Aug 2017407
Jul 2017317
Jun 2017326
May 2017374
Apr 2017273
Mar 2017305
Feb 2017269
Jan 2017230
Is there a shortage of rail transport operatives?
Elevated

The Department for Education rates demand as not high, elevated or critical, using five indicators. This is its 2025 assessment.

  • Visas grantedUsual
  • Online job advertsUsual
  • Wage growthUsual
  • Pay against similar jobsWell above usual
  • Hours workedUsual
Note: uncertainty in visa density.
Vacancies hard to fill because of skills
27%against 27% for all jobs
Broader groupFigure for transport and mobile machine drivers and operatives, which includes rail transport operatives. DfE Employer Skills Survey 2024.
Where the most jobs are advertisedadverts a quarter
London61
Birmingham14
Leeds13
North Lanarkshire13
West Northamptonshire13
Bristol, City of11
Somerset11
Manchester10
North Northamptonshire9
East Suffolk9
London is published as one area. Averages leave out quarters ONS withheld.
Where rail transport operatives are most concentratedShare of local job adverts, compared with the UK.

Recruitment from abroad. Fewer than 10 sponsored work visas were granted for this job from July 2025 to June 2026. Home Office

Who does it

ONS · Annual Population Survey · April 2025 to March 2026
WomenToo few in the survey to give a reliable figure
Age of rail transport operatives
n/p
26%!
26%!
33%!
n/p
!Small sample: treat with cautionn/p: too few in the survey to publish
Show as table
25–34Not published
35–4426% (small sample)
45–5426% (small sample)
55–6433% (small sample)
65+Not published
Highest qualification
Degree or equivalent!31%
A levels or equivalent!45%
GCSEs or equivalent!29%
Other qualifications–
Not published
!Small sample: treat with caution
Show as table
Degree or equivalent31% (small sample)
A levels or equivalent45% (small sample)
GCSEs or equivalent29% (small sample)
Other qualificationsNot published

Main employers: passenger rail transport, interurban (37%), freight rail transport (19%), construction of railways and underground railways (15%), urban and suburban passenger land transport (13%).

How to get in

Hold a degree
31%
as their highest qualification
Most common qualification
A levels or equivalent
held by 45%
Apprenticeships
1
from level 3
Apprenticeships take
18 months
typically

Routes in

You can get into this job through:

College

You could take a college course, which would teach you some of the skills and knowledge needed to get a trainee position.

Courses include:

  • rail engineering
  • engineering operations
  • mechanical or electrical engineering

Some colleges may be able to organise work placements with rail engineering companies as part of a course, so speak with them to get more information.

Entry requirements

Entry requirements for these courses vary.

Apprenticeship

You could apply to do an apprenticeship with a rail engineering company, such as:

  • Rail Engineering Operative Level 2 Intermediate Apprenticeship
  • Rail Infrastructure Operator Level 3 Advanced Apprenticeship
  • Rail Engineering Technician Level 3 Advanced Apprenticeship
Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • some GCSEs, usually including English and maths, or equivalent, for an intermediate apprenticeship
  • 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, including English and maths, for an advanced apprenticeship

Apply directly

You can apply directly to become a railway signaller with Network Rail, who operate the rail system. You'll need a good general standard of education, including English and maths GCSEs.

You do not need any specific experience to become a railway signaller. However, it might be useful to have worked in a role:

  • that is safety critical
  • where you need to concentrate
  • that involves communicating well with others
More about this route
Assessment and interview

You'll go through initial checks before being invited to an assessment day and interview.

Non-technical skills are important in railway signalling jobs. During the assessment day, you'll be tested on safety awareness, staying calm under pressure and working with large amounts of information.

You can find out more about the Network Rail recruitment process to become a signaller.

What you’ll need

  • be screened for drugs and alcohol
  • pass a medical check

Registration and professional bodies

Professional and industry bodies

You can join the Institution of Railway Signal Engineers for professional development opportunities.

Further information

You can find out more about working in the rail industry from Network Rail and Routes into Rail.

Routes in are from the National Careers Service job profile for railway signaller. Contains public sector information from the National Careers Service licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Apprenticeships

1 for this job
Level 3About 18 months

Rail infrastructure operator

Leads to
Chartered Institution of Railway Operators (CIRO)
Employers may ask for
Due to the nature of the railway environment all candidates must be 18 years old at the start of the apprenticeship. Beyond this, individual employers will…
Details on Skills England

© Skills England 2025. This information is licensed under the Open Government Licence https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

The work

ONS · ESCO · O*NET

Typical tasks

  • provides crews for breakdown trains, allocates relief and replacement crews as necessary, keeps crews informed of any line repairs or restrictions, and checks train running times for punctuality
  • examines schedules and decides priority of movement of trains, monitors movement of trains and issues instructions to drivers, signal operatives and level crossing keepers
  • operates signals and opens and closes barriers at level crossings as required
  • examines shunting instructions, uncouples wagons and coaches, guides movement of carriages using manual points and wagon breaks, links-up carriages, ensures security of couplings and reconnects brake and heating systems
  • assists drivers in the operation of diesel, diesel-electric, electric and steam locomotives
  • checks loading of tubs and carriages, and informs driver of load distribution and any special features of route

Skills

  • enforce railway safety regulations
  • ensure compliance with railway regulation
  • follow given instructions
  • operate railway switches
  • shunt inbound loads
  • shunt outbound loads
  • apply signalling control procedures
  • comply with railway safety standards
  • cooperate with colleagues
  • follow strict level crossing operating procedures
  • follow switching instructions in rail operations
  • handle stressful situations
  • manage rail yard resources
  • operate railway communication systems

Knowledge

  • level crossing regulations
  • principles of mechanical engineering
  • rail infrastructure
  • railway framework legislation
  • signal box parts
  • characteristics of wheel rail interface
  • dangers of marshalling activity

Suits people who like

  • Practical, hands-on work
  • Organising and following procedures

Outlook

DfE · Skills Imperative 2035
Broader groupThese projections are for transport and mobile machine drivers and operatives, a group of 14 jobs that includes rail transport operatives.
Change in jobs, 2020 to 2035↑ 6.7%about 80,000 more jobs
Workers needed by 2035748,000including people replacing those who retire or leave

Sources

Pay
ONS, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, 2025 provisional
People in the job, who does it
ONS, Annual Population Survey, April 2025 to March 2026
Job adverts
ONS, online job adverts (Textkernel), to Aug 2026
Demand, skill shortages
Department for Education and Skills England, Occupations in demand and the Employer Skills Survey
Outlook
The Skills Imperative 2035 (2024), NFER/Nuffield/DfE/IER/CE
Routes in
National Careers Service job profiles
Apprenticeships, qualifications
Skills England occupational maps
Skills, interests
ESCO classification of the European Commission; O*NET data, U.S. Department of Labor (CC BY 4.0, modified)
Visas
Home Office, immigration system statistics

Figures as of 10 October 2026.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Occupations in demand and the Employer Skills Survey: Department for Education and Skills England. Immigration system statistics: Home Office. Contains public sector information from the National Careers Service licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

© Skills England 2025. This information is licensed under the Open Government Licence https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

Source: The Skills Imperative 2035 (2024), NFER/Nuffield/DfE/IER/CE.

This service uses the ESCO classification of the European Commission.

This service includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. This service has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. CC BY 4.0 licence.

jobfacts is independent. It is not part of, affiliated with or endorsed by the Office for National Statistics, the Department for Education, Skills England, the National Careers Service, the Home Office, the European Commission or the U.S. Department of Labor.