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Transit and Railroad Police
Protect and police railroad and transit property, employees, or passengers.
Also Known As:
Law Enforcement Officer
Patrol Man
Patrol Officer
Patrolman
Police Captain
Police Specialist
Railroad Police
Railroad Police Officer
Transit Police Officer
Wages
Annual wages for Transit and Railroad Police in United States
Job Outlook
Average
New job opportunities are likely in the future
United States
2034 Projected Employment
3,200
3% Change From 2024
Explore Detectives and Criminal Investigators video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Patrol railroad yards, cars, stations, or other facilities to protect company property or shipments and to maintain order.
- Direct or coordinate the daily activities or training of security staff.
- Investigate or direct investigations of freight theft, suspicious damage or loss of passengers' valuables, or other crimes on railroad property.
- Plan or implement special safety or preventive programs, such as fire or accident prevention.
- Apprehend or remove trespassers or thieves from railroad property or coordinate with law enforcement agencies in apprehensions and removals.
- Apprehend or remove trespassers or thieves from railroad property or coordinate with law enforcement agencies in apprehensions and removals.
- Investigate or direct investigations of freight theft, suspicious damage or loss of passengers' valuables, or other crimes on railroad property.
- Examine credentials of unauthorized persons attempting to enter secured areas.
- Enforce traffic laws regarding the transit system and reprimand individuals who violate them.
- Prepare reports documenting investigation activities and results.
- Provide training to the public or law enforcement personnel in railroad safety or security.
- Monitor transit areas and conduct security checks to protect railroad properties, patrons, and employees.
- Direct security activities at derailments, fires, floods, or strikes involving railroad property.
- Interview neighbors, associates, or former employers of job applicants to verify personal references or to obtain work history data.
- Plan or implement special safety or preventive programs, such as fire or accident prevention.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
- Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
- Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
- Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
- Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
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Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")