pointsman

Noun

1. A man in charge of railroad points (switches).
   • The signalman, as such, was unknown at first. At junctions, or for shunting, the pointsman was responsible both for setting the points and working the appropriate signals, the two being independent. As a result,...
   • At their point of origin, constructing these boxes presented railway companies with an attractive proposition: to remove the need for pointsmen and flagmen operating at several ground-level locations around a railway...

   Synonyms: switchman