Will “Road Patcher” be Replaced By Robots? 🤔

87% Chance of Automation

“Road Patcher” will probably be replaced by robots.

This job is ranked #511 out of #702. A higher ranking (i.e., a lower number) means the job is less likely to be replaced.

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Job Description

Maintain highways, municipal and rural roads, airport runways, and rights-of-way. Duties include patching broken or eroded pavement, repairing guard rails, highway markers, and snow fences. May also mow or clear brush from along road or plow snow from roadway.

Job Details

The SOC (Standard Occupational Classification) code is 47-4051.00
The Mean Annual Wage in the U.S. is $ 39,540.00
The Mean Hourly Wage is $ 19.00
Currently, there are 143,320 people on this job

☝️ Information based on the reference occupation “Highway Maintenance Workers”.

Also Known As…

Tasks for “Road Patcher”

Drive heavy equipment and vehicles with adjustable attachments to sweep debris from paved surfaces, mow grass and weeds, remove snow and ice, and spread salt and sand.
Clean and clear debris from culverts, catch basins, drop inlets, ditches, and other drain structures.
Perform preventative maintenance on vehicles and heavy equipment.
Inspect, clean, and repair drainage systems, bridges, tunnels, and other structures.
Apply oil to road surfaces, using sprayers.
Measure and mark locations for installation of markers, using tape, string, or chalk.
Set out signs and cones around work areas to divert traffic.
Erect, install, or repair guardrails, road shoulders, berms, highway markers, warning signals, and highway lighting, using hand tools and power tools.
Blend compounds to form adhesive mixtures used for marker installation.
Apply poisons along roadsides and in animal burrows to eliminate unwanted roadside vegetation and rodents.
Paint traffic control lines and place pavement traffic messages, by hand or using machines.
Place and remove snow fences used to prevent the accumulation of drifting snow on highways.
Haul and spread sand, gravel, and clay to fill washouts and repair road shoulders.
Inspect markers to verify accurate installation.
Remove litter and debris from roadways, including debris from rock and mud slides.
Drive trucks to transport crews and equipment to work sites.
Perform roadside landscaping work, such as clearing weeds and brush, and planting and trimming trees.
Dump, spread, and tamp asphalt, using pneumatic tampers, to repair joints and patch broken pavement.
Flag motorists to warn them of obstacles or repair work ahead.

Related Technology & Tools

Heavy trucks
Paint guns
Seeders
Concrete paving vibrators
Windrow loaders
Gradalls
Push mowers
Compactors
Light trucks
Power broom street sweepers
Rear flail mowers
Water trucks
Truck mounted excavators
Pile drivers
Draglines
Cherry pickers
Generators
Pavement grinders
Laydown machines
10-ton crawlers
Pneumatic tampers
Pull type pavers
Boom trucks
Flatbed trailers
Oil heating burners
Hammers
Rock drills
Chemical sprayers
4-6 ton roller patchers
Snoopers
Bucket trucks
10-ton tandem-axle dump trucks
Thermoplastic applicators
Spades
Self-propelled sweepers
Pressure washers
Personal computers
Graders
Theodolites
Aggregate spreaders
Epoxy guns
Two-wheel drive front end loaders
Patch rollers less than 9 tons
Wheeled hydraulic booms
High-pressure hydraulic pumps
Jackhammers
Tar distributors
Scissor trucks
Adjustable widemouth pliers
Swiss hammers
Athey loaders
Adjustable wrenches
Water pumps
Asphalt reclaimers
Shovels
Bush axes
8-ton dump trucks
Rear brush hog mowers
Harrows
Medium pressure hydraulic pumps
Mud jacks
Tractor disc attachments
Truck low-bed trailer combos
Ditchers
Forklifts
Dump trucks
Berm drag tractors
Rakes
Pavement rollers
Concrete mixers
Mounted pavement breakers
Tanker trucks
Snowplows
Side-mount rotary mowers
Steam cleaning equipment
Laser printers
Paint transfer pumps
Tractor-mounted mowers
Impact wrenches
Towable barricades
Screwdrivers
Hole diggers/augers
13000-23000 pound graders
Pothole excavation milling machines
Catch basin vacuum cleaners
Gas transporters
Scaffolding
Graffiti removing lasers
Concrete groovers
Tire chains
Vans
Machetes
Tar kettles
Tow brooms
Low boys
Self-propelled cranes
Power screeds
Bulldozers
Sandblasters
Brush chippers
Truck mounted cranes
Four-wheel drive front end loaders
Measuring wheels
Pavement joint sealers
Weedeaters
Culvert cleaners
Concrete saws
Snow blowers
Self-propelled road wideners
Circuit testing equipment
Hydraulic spreaders
Portable welding equipment
Chain saws
Stump cutters
Side dozers
Power saws
Two way radios
Rock cutters
Computerized weed spray trucks
Swinging stages
30-ton clam buckets
Picks
Sewer cleaners
Truck-mounted pavement striping machines
Cold planers
Paint mixers
Sewer eels
Transport trucks
Front end loaders
Stone box spreaders
Belly dump tractor trailers
Chip spreaders
Digger derricks
Bituminous pavers
Hydraulic excavators
Multipurpose vacuum street sweepers
Air compressors
Rotary snowplows
Platform trucks
Sand spreaders
Desktop computers

Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Word
Spreadsheet software
Web browser software
Microsoft Office
Microsoft Outlook
Word processing software
Database software
Microsoft PowerPoint