Railway and Highway Avalanche Clearance Teams: Keeping Routes Open in the Deep of Winter

When the Mountains Don’t Want to Share the Road

Every winter, critical transportation corridors in British Columbia and the Canadian Rockies face a powerful adversary – avalanches. When snow threatens to bury rail lines or block major highways, avalanche clearance teams step in. These professionals use forecasting, explosives, remote sensing, and heavy machinery to keep vital infrastructure safe and operational.

It’s dangerous, cold, and highly technical work – but it’s also one of the most essential and respected roles in winter operations.

Key Qualifications and Pathway

These roles combine avalanche science with field logistics, emergency response, and government-level safety planning. You’ll often be working in high-exposure terrain, alongside explosives technicians, engineers, and heavy equipment crews.

Required Certifications and Training Steps

• Avalanche Skills Training (AST 1 and 2): Foundational education in terrain awareness and snow behavior
• CAA Avalanche Operations Level 1: Required for professional avalanche workers in Canada
• CAA Avalanche Control Certificate: For those directly involved in control operations
• WSBC Avalanche Control Blasting Certificate: Required for those deploying explosives in BC
• CAA Operations Level 2: For advanced forecasting, leadership roles, or program management
• NUEC-A or Wilderness First Responder: Essential for medical preparedness in remote, high-risk terrain
• Radio Protocol and Remote Weather Monitoring: Vital for inter-agency coordination and terrain assessment
• Experience in Snow Safety or Ski Patrol: Many technicians begin in ski resort environments before advancing to transportation-specific work

These roles often require flexible availability, excellent communication skills, and the ability to make judgment calls in rapidly changing alpine environments.

Career Path and Employers

What You’ll Do

• Conduct avalanche risk assessments along highway or railway corridors
• Deploy explosives manually or via helicopter to trigger slides in a controlled way
• Use remote avalanche mitigation technology (e.g., Gazex, O’Bellx, DaisyBell)
• Monitor weather systems, collect snowpack data, and forecast avalanche cycles
• Coordinate road closures, traffic control, and emergency response
• Maintain close contact with maintenance crews, avalanche forecasters, and public safety officers

Typical Employers

• BC Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure – Avalanche Program
• Parks Canada – Highway and Backcountry Safety Teams
• CP Rail and Canadian National (CN)
• Private contractors and avalanche consulting firms
• Ski resorts with adjacent road or rail responsibilities
• Ski Patrol teams providing regional avalanche control support

These teams are often called in during severe weather events and must work efficiently under pressure to restore access.

How Winter Sports Company Can Help You Start a Career in Avalanche Clearance

WSC is deeply connected to the mountain safety industry and provides an ideal launching pad for work in avalanche clearance across transportation networks.

You can:

• Join a WSC Ski Patrol program to gain real-world avalanche safety experience
• Complete AST 1 and 2 and progress to CAA Ops Level 1
• Train for NUEC-A to prepare for remote and trauma care
• Access mentorship from instructors with experience in resort, highway, and rail avalanche control
• Build a resume that combines snow science, safety, and technical fieldwork — ideal for government or contractor avalanche programs
• Receive guidance on applying to government and industry avalanche positions

Whether your goal is to work along Rogers Pass or support avalanche mitigation in the Coast Range, WSC gives you the tools to build a credible, safety-first foundation.

Next Steps: Help Keep the Mountains Moving

If you want to be part of the teams that protect lives and keep major transport routes open through the depths of winter, start with the core skills: avalanche safety, remote response, and risk forecasting.

Contact Winter Sports Company today to explore training options that align with BC’s transportation safety needs – and build your pathway into avalanche clearance for highways and rail lines.