Date Opened: Monday, August 04, 2025 12:00 AM

Close Date: Wednesday, August 20, 2025 12:00 AM

Department: Charlotte Area Transit System Department

Transit & Rail Maintenance

Salary: $26.29 - $32.87 Commensurate with Experience

Welcome to the City of Charlotte

Charlotte is America’s Queen City, opening her arms to a diverse and inclusive community of residents, businesses and visitors alike. Here you will find a safe, family-oriented city where people work together to help everyone thrive. The mission of the City of Charlotte is to deliver quality public services and promote the safety, health, and quality of life for all residents.

Our guiding principles include:

Attracting and retaining a skilled and diverse workforce
Valuing teamwork, openness, accountability, productivity, and employee development
Providing all customers with courteous, responsive, accessible, and seamless quality services
Taking initiative to identify, analyze, and solve problems
Collaborating with stakeholders to make informed decisions

SUMMARY

The Rail Track Maintainer is responsible for preventive maintenance, inspection, troubleshooting, repair, and maintenance of rails, embedded track, switches/turnouts, and other track right of way components. These include but are not limited to special track work parts, ballast ties, direct fixation fasteners, rail joints, roadbed drains, floating slabs, crossing pads, and derailers. Candidates may be required to respond to emergencies on a 24 hour, 7 days a week basis.

Employees must maintain flexible availability to cover a range of shifts including holidays, nights, and weekends, during both their training period and when assigned to permanent shifts.

Special Pay:

This position is eligible for a shift differential. Employees regularly assigned to 2nd or 3rd shifts will be eligible to receive a 2.5% premium added to their base weekly pay.

This position is a CDL eligible position. Employees working in a CDL eligible position with a valid Commercial Driver's License are eligible to receive a 2.5% premium added to their base weekly pay.

Major Duties and Responsibilities:

Responsible for removing obstructions such as tree limbs, shrubs, weeds, graffiti, or any other element that may affect rail operations or the appearance of the ROW
Operate non-revenue vehicles and high-rail maintenance vehicles and perform specific maintenance on this equipment
Assist the supervisor in maintaining records and reports of work production, procurement, and usage of materials
Provide emergency response and will be called upon to provide support for other areas regarding light rail service, special events, trolley, and public safety and service
Assist with the ongoing track inspection program utilizing a computer-reporting system ensuring equipment meets standards, tolerances, and typical adverse conditions that may affect the movement of track
As part of your responsibility to support the CATS Safety Culture, report safety concerns and issues through the various methods established by CATS as outlined in the ASP.
Perform all duties as required

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

Demonstrate knowledge of preventative and corrective maintenance practices.
Perform troubleshooting, maintenance and repair of complex components
Safely operate a variety of standard and specialized hand tools and shop power equipment.
Read, follow and utilize electrical, electronic, and mechanical drawings.
Must be able to document work on logs, spreadsheets, documents and forms as well as utilizing computerized maintenance terminals, personal, laptop and handheld computers.
Must be computer literate and have the ability to adapt to the use and understanding of existing software and future upgrades.
Must be able to work in safety critical and high voltage environments associated with operation of a rail system.
PC skills including all Microsoft Office programs.
Ability to comply with all safety regulations set forth by CATS, OSHA, FTA, FRA, and NCDOT as they apply to CATS LRT; must be able to pass a pre-employment physical.
Ability to lift, carry, and manipulate between 60 to 100 lbs.
Ability to stand, sit, bend, twist, kneel, reach, crouch, lying down prone or supine, at shoulder level or above or any combination listed while performing work.
Ability to work in inclement weather
Ability to perform work at heights on platforms and man lifts
Ability to communicate effectively verbally and in writing

Preferred Qualification:

Track maintenance and/or construction experience

Minimum Qualifications:

High school graduation or equivalent and three years relevant work experience or Associate's Degree and one year relevant work experience
Ability to compute various mathematical functions (addition, subtraction, multiplication, compute fractions, etc.)
Knowledge of and ability to use track maintenance tools such as rail drill, rail saw, tamping, jacks, general construction equipment and hand tools
Commercial Drivers License (CDL) Class B
Must be able to obtain and maintain a City Driving Permit

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT

The City’s Background Check Policy requires background checks to be conducted on final internal or external candidate(s) applying for any position with the City of Charlotte. The type of information that will be collected as part of a background check includes, but is not limited to: reference checks, social security verification, education verification, criminal conviction record check, and, if applicable, a credit history check, sex offender registry and motor vehicle records check.

Background checks must be in compliance with all federal and state statutes, such as the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). The checks must be consistent with the guidelines set forth by these laws requiring organizations to obtain a candidate’s written authorization before obtaining a criminal background report, motor vehicle records check or credit report; and to properly store and dispose of information derived from such reports.

Final candidates must pass a pre-employment drug-screening test and physical examination. During the selection process, candidates may be asked to take a skills test, and/or participate in other assessments.

The City of Charlotte is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, national origin, marital status, age, disability, sexual orientation, political affiliation or on the basis of actual or perceived gender as expressed through dress, appearance, or behavior.

Our culture is to serve the community honorably.

HOW TO APPLY

Apply online.

Federal law requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities. Please tell us if you require a reasonable accommodation to apply for a job.

You are welcome to visit the City of Charlotte Human Resources Department lobby, where self-service application kiosks are available. They are located in our office at 700 East 4th Street, Suite 200, Charlotte, NC 28202. We are open Monday through Friday, from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. (EST), excluding official City holidays.

For questions about your application or the hiring process, please email Careers@ci.charlotte.nc.us.

The City of Charlotte is committed to making our services and programs accessible to all. Upon request, auxiliary aids, written materials in alternate formats, language access, and other reasonable accommodations or modifications will be provided. To make a request, please fill out the Innovation & Technology ADA request form or call 704.336.4120.

BENEFITS

The City of Charlotte provides a comprehensive benefits package to eligible employees.

Click here to learn more about the City of Charlotte’s benefits.

The City of Charlotte is a drug and alcohol-free workplace.