Passive Two-Track Crossing in Kandiyohi County
At 6:20 a.m. in rural Kandiyohi County, Minnesota, you are driving a pickup pulling a stock trailer eastbound on a gravel county road. You approach a passive railroad crossing with a white crossbuck and a smaller '2 TRACKS' sign. There are no gates or flashing lights. A painted stop line is 18 feet before the nearest rail. Tall corn on the right blocks your view for about 300 feet; on the left, the track curves away. The sun is in your eyes. A train horn sounds from the right, but you cannot see the train. Your trailer is 20 feet long, and the crossing is 30 feet wide. A school bus is stopped on the opposite side, waiting. You have crossed this crossing many times without seeing a train.
1. What do the crossbuck and '2 TRACKS' sign require, and where should you stop?
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The white crossbuck means railroad crossing; it requires you to yield to trains and, when a train is approaching, to stop. The '2 TRACKS' sign means there are two sets of rails, so after one train passes, a second train may come from either direction. Do not treat the first clear track as the whole crossing. Stop at the painted stop line, which is set back from the nearest rail; if there were no line, stop within 50 feet of the rail but not closer than 15 feet. That setback lets you see past the hood and the corn, and it keeps your trailer clear of the track. Do not stop on the tracks or block them. Because you are pulling a 20-foot trailer, make sure there is room on the far side to clear the entire rig before you start across.
2. The horn sounds from the right, but you cannot see the train. What should you do?
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Treat the horn as proof that a train is approaching until you can prove otherwise. The corn blocks your view, the sun is in your eyes, and the track curves, so you cannot rely on a quick glance. Stop at the stop line, open your window, look and listen, and wait. Do not creep onto the crossing to get a better look; that puts your truck and trailer in the danger zone. Because the sign says two tracks, a train on the near track could hide a second train on the far track. Proceed only when you have a clear view in both directions and no train is visible or audible. A horn from the right does not tell you which track the train is on.
3. The school bus on the opposite side is stopped, and its driver waves you across while the horn still sounds. What do you do?
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Do not move on a wave. The bus driver may be able to see something you cannot, but the horn still indicates a train approaching, and your view is blocked by corn and glare. The bus is required to stop at the crossing, so its presence is not a signal that the crossing is clear. Keep your rig behind the stop line. Check both tracks again; with two tracks, the visible train may be on one track while another is coming on the other. Only after the horn stops and you have a clear view should you cross, and then only if the far side has enough room for your truck and 20-foot trailer to clear the tracks completely. Never let a hand signal override your own observation.