Time left: 5 years and 3 months · Group: Transportation and Material Moving
The official job description
Operate and tend bridges, canal locks, and lighthouses to permit marine passage on inland waterways, near shores, and at danger points in waterway passages. May supervise such operations. Includes drawbridge operators, lock operators, and slip bridge operators.
Source: O*NET OnLine, U.S. Department of Labor, used under CC BY 4.0.
What bridge and lock tenders do all day (for now)
Move levers to activate traffic signals, navigation lights, and alarms.
Record names, types, and destinations of vessels passing through bridge openings or locks, and numbers of trains or vehicles crossing bridges.
Control machinery to open and close canal locks and dams, railroad or highway drawbridges, or horizontally or vertically adjustable bridges.
Direct movements of vessels in locks or bridge areas, using signals, telecommunication equipment, or loudspeakers.
Prepare accident reports.
Observe approaching vessels to determine size and speed, and listen for whistle signals indicating desire to pass.