Transportation and Material Moving · Holland code RCI

Transportation Vehicle, Equipment and Systems Inspectors, Except Aviation

Inspect and monitor transportation equipment, vehicles, or systems to ensure compliance with regulations and safety standards.

Also called: Carman, Inspector, Safety Inspector, Transit Vehicle Inspector, Car Inspector, Emissions Inspector, Motor Carrier Inspector, Quality Assurance Inspector.

O*NET 53-6051.07

At a glance

US median annual pay: $92,100; Middle half earn $58,780 to $108,890. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
Most common education: High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED); 58% of workers surveyed by O*NET report this level.
Preparation needed: Job Zone 2 of 5; Some preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.

What the work involves

The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.

Inspect repairs to transportation vehicles or equipment to ensure that repair work was performed properly.
Inspect vehicles or equipment to ensure compliance with rules, standards, or regulations.
Investigate complaints regarding safety violations.
Inspect vehicles or other equipment for evidence of abuse, damage, or mechanical malfunction.
Conduct vehicle or transportation equipment tests, using diagnostic equipment.
Conduct remote inspections of motor vehicles, using handheld controllers and remotely directed vehicle inspection devices.
Issue notices and recommend corrective actions when infractions or problems are found.
Attach onboard diagnostics (OBD) scanner cables to vehicles to conduct emissions inspections.

Skills and knowledge it leans on

Skills

Active Listening3.1 / 5
Reading Comprehension3.0 / 5
Speaking3.0 / 5
Critical Thinking3.0 / 5
Monitoring2.9 / 5
Active Learning2.8 / 5

Knowledge areas

Mechanical4.0 / 5
Transportation3.3 / 5
English Language3.2 / 5
Public Safety and Security3.0 / 5
Administration and Management3.0 / 5
Computers and Electronics2.8 / 5

Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.

Who tends to enjoy it

How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.

Realistic100
Investigative45
Artistic0
Social0
Enterprising6
Conventional69

The same work abroad

Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.

European occupation titles (ESCO)

rolling stock engine inspector · DE Inspektor Lokomotivenantriebe/Inspektorin Lokomotivenantriebe · FR inspecteur de moteurs de matériel roulant/inspectrice de moteurs de matériel roulant
rolling stock inspector · DE Schienenfahrzeuginspektor/Schienenfahrzeuginspektorin · FR inspecteur de matériel roulant/inspectrice de matériel roulant
vessel engine inspector · DE Schiffsmotoreninspektor/Schiffsmotoreninspektorin · FR inspecteur de moteurs marins/inspectrice de moteurs marins
motor vehicle assembly inspector · DE Qualitätsprüfer Fahrzeugbau/Qualitätsprüferin Fahrzeugbau · FR contrôleur qualité des assemblages en véhicules automobiles/contrôleuse qualité des assemblages en véhicules automobiles
vessel assembly inspector · DE Qualitätsprüfer Schiffsbau/Qualitätsprüferin Schiffsbau · FR contrôleur qualité des assemblages en construction navale/contrôleuse qualité des assemblages en construction navale

Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)

Routine inspectors and testers (8143)54,800 employed
Engineering technicians (3113)74,200 employed
Weighers, graders and sorters (8144)7,800 employed

Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.

Pay across Europe, for the whole group

Median annual earnings of all employees in “Technicians and associate professionals”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.

Median annual earnings, Technicians and associate professionals, by country
Country	Median pay
Belgium	€50,992
Austria	€46,986
Germany	€44,473
Netherlands	€42,448
Ireland	€41,613
Sweden	€41,155
Italy	€34,882
France	€34,816
Spain	€29,757
Portugal	€18,080
Poland	€12,108

Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.

Exposure to AI

This occupation sits in the middle third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of -0.18. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.

Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.

Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (53-6051).

Is it a fit for you?

Interest is one input, alongside ability, pay and what is hiring near you. The career interests test takes about thirteen minutes and ranks occupations by how closely their profile matches yours.

Take the career interests test