Transportation

Subway & Light Rail Operators

SOC 53-4041

Drive commuter trains and light rail within metropolitan transit systems.

The job

Median pay

$86k

$62k to $90k typical range

Outlook, 2025 to 2035

Growing

+3.7% projected

Openings a year

900

BLS projection

Typical education

High school

Our model

AI displacement risk

Moderate

How much of this job AI may do instead of the person

Works with AI

5/100

AI alongside the person rather than instead of them

AI exposure

34th pct

More exposed than 34% of occupations · modeled estimate · 44th pct in Microsoft's data

Future-proof

49/100

Take the next step

Weigh it against Air Traffic ControllersPay, outlook, entry and AI exposure side by side See where it pays mostMaryland leads at $92k; every state is below Find careers like itOpen the map at Subway & Light Rail Operators and explore its neighbours See open jobsSubway & Light Rail Operators roles hiring now Learn the skillsCourses for Subway & Light Rail Operators, who lean most on active listening Real pay & reviewsWhat Subway & Light Rail Operators say they actually earn

Key skills

Active Listening
Speaking
Monitoring
Reading Comprehension
Critical Thinking
Active Learning

Pay and jobs by state

BLS OEWS May 2025, 51 states. Sorted by jobs; per 1,000 is jobs per thousand workers in the state; vs national compares that rate with the country's. A tilde marks a figure estimated from the parent occupation group where BLS publishes none.

State	Jobs	Per 1,000	vs national	Median pay
Utah	970	0.6	8.5×	$59k
California	900	0.0	0.8×	$79k
Maryland	480	0.2	2.6×	$92k
New York	478	0.0	0.8×	$91k~
Illinois	473	0.1	1.2×	$89k~
Pennsylvania	428	0.1	1.1×	$86k~
Ohio	395	0.1	1.1×	$84k~
Washington	320	0.1	1.4×	$77k
Georgia	300	0.1	0.9×	$60k
Tennessee	275	0.1	1.3×	$82k~

All 51 states

State	Jobs	Per 1,000	vs national	Median pay
Indiana	268	0.1	1.3×	$86k~
Virginia	242	0.1	0.9×	$62k~
Texas	240	0.0	0.3×	$59k
Wisconsin	205	0.1	1.1×	$88k~
Arizona	203	0.1	1.0×	$88k~
Massachusetts	174	0.0	0.7×	$89k~
Kentucky	168	0.1	1.3×	$87k~
Colorado	163	0.1	0.9×	$92k~
Alabama	155	0.1	1.1×	$74k~
South Carolina	154	0.1	1.0×	$75k~
Louisiana	140	0.1	1.1×	$76k~
Minnesota	140	0.0	0.7×	$65k
New Jersey	140	0.0	0.5×	$69k
Florida	130	0.0	0.2×	$73k
Oregon	128	0.1	1.0×	$90k~
Oklahoma	116	0.1	1.0×	$74k~
Nevada	111	0.1	1.1×	$82k~
North Carolina	110	0.0	0.3×	$63k
Iowa	109	0.1	1.1×	$90k~
Kansas	101	0.1	1.1×	$87k~
Arkansas	100	0.1	1.2×	$75k~
Connecticut	96	0.1	0.9×	$86k~
Mississippi	91	0.1	1.2×	$74k~
Missouri	70	0.0	0.4×	$53k
Nebraska	68	0.1	1.0×	$87k~
Idaho	54	0.1	1.0×	$87k~
New Mexico	48	0.1	0.8×	$79k~
West Virginia	45	0.1	1.0×	$72k~
Michigan	40	0.0	0.1×	$42k
Hawaii	38	0.1	0.9×	$93k~
New Hampshire	38	0.1	0.8×	$85k~
Maine	37	0.1	0.9×	$88k~
Delaware	32	0.1	1.0×	$90k~
North Dakota	32	0.1	1.1×	$96k~
South Dakota	30	0.1	1.0×	$78k~
Montana	29	0.1	0.9×	$89k~
Alaska	23	0.1	1.1×	$98k~
Rhode Island	23	0.0	0.7×	$88k~
Wyoming	19	0.1	1.0×	$92k~
Vermont	16	0.1	0.8×	$89k~
Washington DC	14	0.0	0.3×	$96k~

Top metro areas

New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ3,950 jobs · $90k median
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA320 jobs · $77k median
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA270 jobs · $60k median
San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA200 jobs · $61k median
Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD150 jobs · $84k median
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI130 jobs · $70k median
Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC70 jobs · $62k median
St. Louis, MO-IL40 jobs · $63k median

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Pay and outlook from BLS (OEWS 2025, Employment Projections 2025-2035). Skills and work activities from O*NET 30.3. AI exposure and future-proof scores are modeled estimates. How these numbers are made.