Overview:
To realize the full economic, operational, and job creation benefits deriving from recent investments in rail planning and infrastructure improvement projects, the Montana-based project team will implement activities designed to strengthen the industry’s talent pipeline in the state and region. Montana is one of the largest states by area but has one of the lowest population densities in the nation. These unique characteristics offer both challenges and opportunities for rail operations and workforce development. Public post-secondary education in Montana enrolls over 40,000 students at 16 colleges and universities and seven tribal colleges. Although currently there are no specific railway engineering or related degrees offered in the state, ample opportunities exist to leverage existing training and education resources and programs for the purpose of enhancing career readiness and career pathways into rail.
Why Rail Matters to Montana:
- The rail industry directly employs close to 3,000 workers in the state and generates additional jobs in related manufacturing, maintenance, logistics, planning, and engineering sectors.
- Railroad employees receive higher than average mean annual wages.
- Rail is the most fuel-efficient means of transporting freight over land, especially for export of heavy agricultural, petroleum-based, or other bulk commodities.
- Passenger rail generates direct spending and tax revenues in the state and provides rural residents with essential transportation access to healthcare, employment, education, and larger regional hubs.
Rail Operations and Emerging Trends:
- Six Class I, regional, and short-line freight railroads and one long-distance Amtrak passenger line currently operate in Montana.
- Montana’s rail network comprises more than 3,600 miles of track.
- The Amtrak Empire Builder route through northern Montanan carries an average of 350,000 passengers annually.
- Montana is actively exploring passenger rail service expansion in the southern portion of the state through the Corridor Identification program.
- There is growing concern about improving rail safety, especially when transporting high-hazard flammable freight.
- Freight rail companies are exploring implementation of more automated track and train/car defect detection technologies.
Workforce Challenges and Opportunities:
- Labor force participation rates are expected to decline in the future due to aging demographics in the state.
- There is strong competition for workers across the state.
- Rail employers express a preference for local hires due to difficulty in relocating staff to geographically remote rural areas.
- Limited rail-specific training and education opportunities and career pathway development activities in the state.
Montana Rail Workforce Needs Assessment
Montana Multisector Working Group
Project strategies and implementation will be guided by a Multisector Working Group. The working group is made up of industry, labor, education, and workforce representatives from across the state and region. They will assist the team in identifying workforce development needs, skills gaps, and training and education priorities, and will help engage educators across the K-12 and post-secondary education continuum in project activities.