After a Copperas Cove ISD school bus was filmed stopped underneath a railroad crossing arm Tuesday, Channel 6 looked into the requirements for buses arriving at rail crossings.
According to the Texas Department of Public Safety, Section 545.2535 of the transportation code states school buses have to stop at railroad crossings. However, there are exceptions.
Here is what a bus driver must do at railroad crossings:
- Stop the vehicle not closer than 15 feet or farther than 50 feet from the track.
- While stopped, listen and look in both directions along the track for an approaching train and signals indicating the approach of a train.
- Drivers may not proceed until it is safe to do so.
The operator must drive in a gear that permits the bus to complete the crossing without a change of gears. The operator may not shift gears while crossing the track.
Drivers are not required to stop at an abandoned railroad grade crossing that is marked with a sign reading “tracks out of service” or an industrial or spur line railroad grade crossing that is marked with a sign reading “exempt.”
