Switchman

{
  "id": "MLC-T-IND-005817",
  "term": "Switchman",
  "field": "Industrial and trades",
  "definition": "A railroad worker responsible for the ground-level operation of track switches and the coupling or uncoupling of rail cars in a yard or on a main line. This crew member, also known as a brakeman or yard helper, follows instructions from a conductor or yardmaster to assemble and disassemble trains. The switchman's duties include physically aligning switch points with a switch iron, setting handbrakes on stationary cars, and relaying hand signals to the locomotive engineer.",
  "synonyms": [
    "pointsman"
  ],
  "subject": "Rail equipment",
  "see_also": [
    "switcher"
  ],
  "translations": {
    "de": "Weichensteller",
    "es": "guardagujas",
    "fr": "aiguilleur"
  },
  "url": "https://mlchart.com/terminology/industrial/switchman/"
}