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twc@transportcenter.orgHooked on Maintenance — Ryan Reynolds’ Career Catch
Since earning his technical school certification and starting his career as a heavy diesel maintenance technician, Senior Systems Maintenance Technician Ryan Reynolds has helped maintain the region’s expanding light rail systems while working at Sound Transit (Seattle-Tacoma).
1. What sparked your interest in mechanical work?
The light rail system [in Tacoma] was installed when I was in high school, and I’ve always been interested in it, but I didn’t feel like it would be something that I could be working at. When the opportunity came my way, I was actually nervous and excited because most of the time, people will say you became a mechanic because you’ve worked on your own cars. You don’t have a light rail engine in your backyard! But it’s something unique and new, and it’s a very unique trade.
2. What led you to a career in transit?
I went to technical school to become a heavy diesel technician, and when I got out, I got approached by an employer/company during a job fair, and that’s how I got my foot in the door. After a couple years, I got my journeyman title. One day, I went fishing with a couple of friends up at one of the local lakes, and there was an individual on the same dock. I found out he had just moved up from San Diego. He had started as a light rail supervisor here at Sound Transit (Seattle-Tacoma). We exchanged numbers and kept in contact.
Then, he let me know that there was an opportunity at Sound Transit (Seattle-Tacoma), and he wanted to see if I was interested. I was a little nervous, because it’s not something that you see every day, or at least come across your plate, but I applied for the position and found out a couple months later that I was accepted, and that was 10 years ago.
3. What has your experience with training and support for skills development been like at Sound Transit (Seattle-Tacoma)?
A coworker who is now a superintendent in charge of the expansion team at King County Rail was the individual I met from San Diego and helped shape my work here. Another person was actually here since the beginning of this property, and he also helped me when I first came in. He helped me with the electrical schematics because it’s different from the schematics that I was used to.
Our training department actually uses me to help train the guys before they go on to their shifts to have an understanding of what we’re doing. Every new technician we get, they shadow me for the first couple of weeks. So, I’ll show them the preventive maintenance. If this special inspection comes up, I explain it to them line by line, and I’ll have them hold the sheet, and I’m like, “This is where you check this. This is how you check that.” We all bring something to the plate, and that’s what makes our team strong.
4. How would you describe your day-to-day work and the new technology you use?
Nothing is the same from day to day. What we do here: we do the LRV [Light Rail Vehicle] maintenance, we do the signaling, we do the track work, and we do the OCS [Overhead Catenary System], which is the overhead wire maintenance, as well as the traction power substations. While this location is unique because we do all five, if you go to another property, they’re separate crafts. So, there’s a team that strictly works on substations. There’s a team that only works on the overhead wire, LRV maintenance, and signals systems. What is cool is you’ve got your hands on everything.
Yesterday, I was troubleshooting the logic system in one of our new Brookville trains. The day before, I was doing gearbox maintenance. It’s never the same every day. As we know, technology advances quickly. It’s learning the new software that is being installed, especially since the new softwares are very sensitive, and with the computers we are using now, it is a learning curve. We can quickly diagnose one of the newer trains, while the older trains sometimes take a couple days.
5. What information do you want to share with individuals interested in a career like yours?
A lot of people truly don’t understand transit. So, in my free time, I explain it as best as I can. Actually, I’ve got three people here hired, and they have loved it ever since. I was able to get an individual that I know onto the maintenance team and then two operators, because they were all truck drivers. I was like, “Guys, the retirement is good. You don’t have to worry about the deliveries—you’re a people mover.” Going from the private sector to working in a transit agency is a big jump, and it’s different, but everyone I talked to, they loved how they made that decision and actually did the crossover.
It’s entertaining to me because you don’t know what’s going to happen in the next hour. That’s one thing that I love about working here. No two days are exactly the same, and that keeps the job interesting—especially for someone who enjoys problem-solving.
6. What other factors have been important to you working in and staying with Sound Transit (Seattle-Tacoma) and the transit industry as a whole?
I’m here for the public. Our system connects the hilltop district to the downtown district. There are certain hills that school buses and trucks are not allowed to go up. It’s so steep. But the transit system actually helps carve into that road so we can connect between the communities. Just take the light rail going to downtown Tacoma, and there are shops and restaurants and everything else, and that is why I’m really committed to being in this type of role.
Honestly, I’m not tired of being a technician. I came into the agency at such a young age. I was only 26. I used it when I was a kid; growing up with all the hills and everything, it gets a little tiring to be on a bike, so I use the bus system quite often. I believe in transit.
This interview has been edited and adapted from a longer conversation with Ryan Reynolds.
To learn more about other workers’ experiences in the industry, visit the Transit Career Stories page and follow our series on inspiring transit career stories.
Published on May 28, 2026
