Railroad-Highway Grade Crossings and Stopping Requirements
Passenger vehicles carrying passengers are required to stop at railroad-highway grade crossings, even where a stop is not otherwise required, unless the crossing is exempt or an officer or signal directs traffic through. The stop must be made within 50 feet but not less than 15 feet from the nearest rail. After stopping, look and listen in both directions, open the window or door if needed for a clear view, and proceed only when you are certain no train is approaching.
Never stop on the tracks. If your vehicle stalls or is stuck on the crossing, get everyone out and away immediately, then call for help-do not stay with the vehicle. Know the warning devices: crossbucks, flashing lights, gates, and pavement markings. A flashing light or a lowering gate means stop; never drive around a gate.
Traps: assuming the stop is required only when lights are flashing (the stop is required regardless, for passenger vehicles carrying passengers), stopping too far back or too close to the rails, and trying to beat a train or judge its speed (trains are closer and faster than they appear). Another trap is forgetting the 15-to-50-foot window.
Rule of thumb: stop 15 to 50 feet back, look and listen both ways, and go only when clear. Worked example: approaching an unguarded crossing with no flashing lights, a passenger bus must still stop, look, and listen before crossing.