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School bus at railroad-highway crossings

School Bus (S)5 minManual section 10.4

A school bus is one of the safest vehicles on the road, but against a train it has no chance. A train is so heavy that it cannot stop quickly and it cannot swerve. Every crash between a bus and a train can be prevented by the driver's routine at the crossing.

Passive and active crossings

Passive crossing: has no traffic control device. You must stop and follow the procedure, and the decision to go is entirely yours. You must recognize the crossing, search for any train, and decide if there is enough clear space to cross. Passive crossings have yellow round advance warning signs, pavement markings and cross-bucks to help you recognize them. Be especially careful at passive crossings.

Active crossing: has a traffic control device: flashing red lights, with or without bells, or flashing red lights with bells and gates.

Warning signs and devices

  • Advance warning sign: round, black on yellow, placed before a public crossing. It means slow down, look and listen for a train, and be ready to stop if one is coming.
  • Pavement markings: mean the same as the advance sign: an “X” with the letters “RR” and a no-passing marking on two-lane roads. Two-lane roads also have a no-passing zone sign. A white stop line may be painted ahead of the tracks; the front of the bus must stay behind this line while stopped.
  • Cross-buck sign: marks the crossing itself and means yield to the train. If there is no white stop line, stop before the cross-buck. If there is more than one track, a sign below the cross-buck shows the number of tracks.
  • Flashing red lights: many cross-bucks have flashing red lights and bells. When the lights flash, stop: a train is coming. Yield to it. With more than one track, make sure all tracks are clear.
  • Gates: many crossings have gates with flashing lights and bells. Stop when the lights start flashing, before the gate comes down. Stay stopped until the gates go up and the lights stop flashing, then go when safe. If the train is gone but the gate is still down, never go around it. Call your dispatcher.

Recommended procedure

Each state has its own laws, but in general school buses must stop at all crossings and make sure it is safe before crossing.

Approaching: slow down (shift to a lower gear in a manual bus) and test your brakes. Turn on the hazard lights about 200 feet before the crossing. Scan around you and check traffic behind. Stay to the right if possible. Choose an escape route in case of brake failure or trouble behind you.

At the crossing: stop 15 to 50 feet from the nearest rail (not closer than 15, not farther than 50), at the spot with the best view. Put the transmission in Park (or Neutral and hold the service brake or set the parking brakes). Turn off radios and noisy equipment, and quiet the passengers. Open the service door and the driver's window. Look and listen for a train.

Crossing: check the signals again before going. At a multiple-track crossing, stop only before the first track; when sure no train is coming on any track, cross all tracks without stopping. Cross in a low gear and do not change gears while crossing. If the gate drops once you are already crossing, keep going through it, even if the gate breaks.

Special situations

Bus stalls or is trapped on the tracks: get everyone off the bus and off the tracks right away. Lead them well away from the bus, at an angle that goes away from the tracks and toward the oncoming train. (When the train hits the bus, wreckage is thrown forward in the direction the train is moving.)

Police officer at the crossing: obey the officer's directions. If there is no officer and you think the signal is malfunctioning, call your dispatcher, report it and ask how to proceed.

Obstructed view: plan your route for maximum sight distance at crossings. Only cross when you can see far enough along the track to be certain no train is on the way. Even when active signals show the tracks are clear, you must still look and listen.

Containment area (storage area): “If it won't fit, don't commit!” Know your bus length and the space between the tracks and any signal or stop sign on the other side. Be sure the bus can completely clear the tracks if it must stop there. General rule: add 15 feet to the length of the bus to find an acceptable containment space.

Check your state

School bus rules are set mostly by state and local law, so the exact steps can differ where you live. This lesson teaches the national manual procedure. Check your state manual and your school district rules too.

References and scope

The topic reference is listed below. Sources support verification; the lesson itself is here. The current content needs technical and language review before public launch.

Manual reference: 10.4

Official CDL handbook · Utah ↗StatesOur editorial approach

Put it into practice

Educational questions with explanations. The answer review also works without the interactive quiz.

Preparing your questions…

Review questions with answers

  1. What is a passive railroad crossing?
    1. A crossing with gates
    2. A crossing with flashing lights and bells
    3. A crossing with no traffic control device
    4. A crossing that is abandoned
    Show answer
    A crossing with no traffic control device

    A passive crossing has no traffic control device; the decision to proceed rests entirely with you.

  2. Why should you be extra careful at passive crossings?
    1. There is no device to warn you, so the decision is entirely yours
    2. Trains go slower there
    3. The tracks are always double
    4. Police are always present
    Show answer
    There is no device to warn you, so the decision is entirely yours

    At passive crossings you must recognize the crossing, search for trains and decide if it is safe.

  3. An active crossing has:
    1. Only a round yellow sign
    2. Only pavement markings
    3. Only a cross-buck
    4. A traffic control device such as flashing red lights, bells or gates
    Show answer
    A traffic control device such as flashing red lights, bells or gates

    Active crossings have devices: flashing red lights with or without bells, or lights with bells and gates.

  4. The advance warning sign for a railroad crossing is:
    1. Red and octagonal
    2. Round, black on yellow
    3. White and rectangular
    4. A green diamond
    Show answer
    Round, black on yellow

    The round, black-on-yellow advance warning sign is placed ahead of a public crossing.

  5. If there is a white stop line before the tracks, where must the bus be when stopped?
    1. With the front wheels on the line
    2. Past the line but before the rail
    3. With the front of the bus behind the line
    4. On the tracks
    Show answer
    With the front of the bus behind the line

    The front of the school bus must remain behind the white stop line while stopped.

  6. If there is no white line painted on the pavement, where must you stop?
    1. Before the cross-buck sign
    2. Right at the first rail
    3. At the advance warning sign
    4. Anywhere you can see
    Show answer
    Before the cross-buck sign

    With no white line, stop the bus before the cross-buck sign.

  7. What does a sign below the cross-buck show?
    1. The train speed
    2. The distance to the next town
    3. The railroad phone number
    4. The number of tracks
    Show answer
    The number of tracks

    When the road crosses more than one track, a sign below the cross-buck shows the number of tracks.

  8. After a train passes, the crossing gate stays down. You should:
    1. Drive carefully around the gate
    2. Call your dispatcher
    3. Lift the gate
    4. Back up and use another road without telling anyone
    Show answer
    Call your dispatcher

    A gate that stays down after the train is gone must never be driven around; call your dispatcher.

  9. Pavement markings at a railroad crossing include:
    1. A white arrow
    2. A yellow circle
    3. An “X” with the letters “RR” and a no-passing marking
    4. A stop sign painted on the road
    Show answer
    An “X” with the letters “RR” and a no-passing marking

    Pavement markings are an X with RR and a no-passing marking on two-lane roads.

  10. When approaching a railroad crossing in a school bus, turn on the hazard lights about how far before the crossing?
    1. 200 feet
    2. 50 feet
    3. 500 feet
    4. 1,000 feet
    Show answer
    200 feet

    Activate hazard lights approximately 200 feet before the crossing.

  11. At a railroad crossing, a school bus should stop:
    1. Within 10 feet of the nearest rail
    2. Exactly 100 feet from the nearest rail
    3. Only if a train is visible
    4. No closer than 15 feet and no farther than 50 feet from the nearest rail
    Show answer
    No closer than 15 feet and no farther than 50 feet from the nearest rail

    Stop 15 to 50 feet from the nearest rail, at the point that gives the best view of the tracks.

  12. While stopped at a crossing, you should:
    1. Keep the radio on to hear warnings
    2. Turn off radios and noisy equipment, silence passengers, and open the service door and driver's window
    3. Keep all doors and windows closed
    4. Let students look for the train
    Show answer
    Turn off radios and noisy equipment, silence passengers, and open the service door and driver's window

    Turn off noise sources, quiet the passengers, open the service door and window, then look and listen.

  13. At a multiple-track crossing, where should you stop?
    1. Before each set of tracks
    2. Between the tracks
    3. Only before the first set of tracks
    4. After the last track
    Show answer
    Only before the first set of tracks

    Stop only before the first set of tracks; when sure no train is coming, cross all tracks until fully clear.

  14. A crossing gate comes down after you have started across the tracks. You should:
    1. Drive through the gate, even if it breaks
    2. Stop and back up
    3. Stop on the tracks and wait
    4. Evacuate the students on the tracks
    Show answer
    Drive through the gate, even if it breaks

    If the gate comes down after you start across, drive through it even if it means breaking the gate.

  15. Your bus stalls on the tracks. Where should you move the students?
    1. Back toward the school
    2. Onto the other track
    3. Behind the bus, away from the train
    4. Far from the bus at an angle away from the tracks and toward the train
    Show answer
    Far from the bus at an angle away from the tracks and toward the train

    Get everyone off immediately and move them far from the bus at an angle away from the tracks and toward the train.

  16. As a general rule, how much containment (storage) space do you need on the far side of the tracks?
    1. The length of the bus only
    2. The length of the bus plus 15 feet
    3. Exactly 50 feet
    4. Twice the length of the bus
    Show answer
    The length of the bus plus 15 feet

    Add 15 feet to the length of the bus to find an acceptable containment area. If it won't fit, don't commit.

  17. There is no police officer at a crossing and you believe the signal is malfunctioning. You should:
    1. Cross quickly
    2. Ignore the signal
    3. Call your dispatcher, report it, and ask how to proceed
    4. Wait for the next train
    Show answer
    Call your dispatcher, report it, and ask how to proceed

    If no officer is present and the signal seems broken, call your dispatcher for instructions.

  18. Active signals show the tracks are clear. You still must look and listen before crossing.
    1. True
    2. False
    Show answer
    True

    True. Signals can fail, so even when they say the tracks are clear, look and listen yourself.

  19. Approaching a crossing in a manual-transmission school bus, you should:
    1. Speed up to cross quickly
    2. Shift into neutral
    3. Change lanes to the left
    4. Slow down, shift to a lower gear, and test your brakes
    Show answer
    Slow down, shift to a lower gear, and test your brakes

    Slow down, shift to a lower gear in a manual bus, test brakes, and choose an escape route.