CSLB General Building (B) — All Questions

At a railroad crossing, a school bus must:

• a.Slow down but may roll through if no train is visible
• b.Stop, whether or not it is carrying passengers, unless the crossing is exempt✓
• c.Stop only when carrying students
• d.Never stop, to avoid stalling on the tracks

School buses are required to stop at railroad crossings whether or not students are aboard, except at crossings marked exempt or where a police officer or signal directs otherwise. The driver stops, looks, and listens before proceeding. This rule exists because of the catastrophic consequences of a train collision.

The school bus should stop before a railroad crossing:

• a.Within 50 feet but not less than 15 feet from the nearest rail✓
• b.Right on the first rail
• c.At least 100 feet past the tracks
• d.Only at the crossing gate itself

The bus must stop within 50 feet but not less than 15 feet from the nearest rail, where the driver has the best view down the tracks. Stopping too close or on the tracks is dangerous, and stopping too far reduces visibility. From this position the driver looks and listens in both directions.

Before crossing the tracks, the driver should:

• a.Turn up the radio to stay alert
• b.Keep the bus in a high gear
• c.Open the door and window, look and listen in both directions✓
• d.Signal students to stand up

The driver opens the service door and driver's window, then looks and listens carefully in both directions for an approaching train. Reducing interior noise helps the driver hear a train horn. Only when certain no train is coming should the driver proceed.

You should never shift gears while:

• a.Approaching the stop line
• b.The bus is empty
• c.Turning on the warning lights
• d.The bus is crossing the railroad tracks✓

Never change gears while crossing the tracks, because if the bus stalls or hesitates mid-crossing it could be struck by a train. Select a gear before the crossing that will pull you completely across without shifting. Cross steadily and do not stop on the tracks.

You should only start across the tracks if you are sure you can:

• a.Completely clear the tracks without stopping✓
• b.Stop halfway if a car cuts in
• c.Beat an approaching train
• d.Shift into a lower gear on the rails

Never start across until you are certain you can get completely across without stopping. If traffic ahead might force you to stop on the tracks, wait until there is room on the far side for the entire bus. Being trapped on the tracks is a deadly situation.

The distance a fully loaded bus needs to clear the tracks is important because:

• a.It affects fuel economy
• b.A stalled or trapped bus on the tracks can be struck by a train✓
• c.It changes the gear ratio
• d.It determines the warning-light timing

You must be sure there is enough room on the other side for the entire length of the bus before starting across. If the far side is blocked, the bus could become trapped on the tracks. Allow at least the length of the bus plus 15 feet of clearance beyond the far rail.

At an 'exempt' railroad crossing sign, a school bus:

• a.Must still make a full stop
• b.Must reverse and find another route
• c.Is not required to stop, but the driver should still be cautious✓
• d.Must sound the horn continuously

An 'exempt' sign indicates a crossing where a stop is not required, often an abandoned or industrial track. Even so, the driver should slow, look, and remain alert. Local policy may still require caution, and the driver should never assume no train can appear.

If your bus stalls or gets trapped on the tracks with a train coming, you should:

• a.Stay in the bus and try to restart the engine
• b.Wait for help to arrive
• c.Call dispatch first, then evacuate
• d.Immediately evacuate everyone and move away from the tracks toward the oncoming train at an angle✓

If trapped on the tracks with a train approaching, get everyone out and away immediately, moving toward the oncoming train but off to the side at an angle to avoid flying debris after impact. Never stay to restart the bus. Once everyone is at a safe distance, call for help.

When you move toward the oncoming train to evacuate, you angle away from the tracks because:

• a.Debris from the collision will fly forward, away from the train's direction of travel✓
• b.Trains stop quickly
• c.It is the shortest path to the road
• d.The train crew can see you better

You move toward the train but at an angle away from the tracks so that when the train strikes the bus, the debris is thrown forward in the train's direction of travel, away from you. Running away from the train in the same direction it moves would put you in the path of scattering wreckage. This roughly 45-degree angle toward the train is the standard escape direction.

'Storing enough room' at a railroad crossing means:

• a.Leaving space behind you for other buses
• b.Having enough space on the far side to fit the entire bus beyond the tracks✓
• c.Keeping fuel in reserve
• d.Room in the aisle for standing students

Before crossing, confirm there is enough space on the far side for the whole bus to clear the tracks without stopping. If traffic or a signal ahead could force you to halt on the rails, wait behind the crossing. Never enter a crossing you might not be able to exit.

At a crossing with multiple tracks, after one train passes you should:

• a.Cross immediately since the danger is over
• b.Assume all tracks are now clear
• c.Look again in both directions, as a second train may be coming on another track✓
• d.Speed up to beat any second train

A passing train can hide a second train approaching on another track from the opposite direction. After the first train clears, look and listen again before crossing. Never assume the tracks are safe just because one train has gone by.

Placing the transmission in the correct gear before a crossing matters because:

• a.It saves brake wear
• b.It keeps students quiet
• c.It reduces exhaust
• d.You must not shift on the tracks and need a gear that pulls you fully across✓

Choose a gear before starting across that will move the bus completely over the crossing without needing to shift. Shifting on the tracks risks stalling and getting stuck. Manual-transmission drivers especially must plan the gear in advance.

When stopped at a railroad crossing, the bus's hazard warning flashers should generally be:

• a.Turned on to warn traffic behind you that you are stopping✓
• b.Turned off to avoid confusion
• c.Replaced by the red student-loading lights
• d.Alternated with the headlights

Activating the hazard flashers as you slow and stop at a crossing warns following drivers that the bus is stopping, since they may not expect it. Do not use the red student loading lights, which are only for loading and unloading. Follow your state and district policy on flasher use at crossings.

If a railroad crossing gate is down or lights are flashing, you must:

• a.Drive around the gate if no train is visible
• b.Wait until the gate rises and lights stop before crossing✓
• c.Cross quickly before a train arrives
• d.Reverse and find another route immediately

Never drive around a lowered gate or cross while warning lights are flashing; wait until the gate is fully raised and the lights have stopped. Going around a gate is illegal and deadly. Trains can be closer and faster than they appear.

A common misjudgment drivers make at crossings is that:

• a.Trains are slower than they look
• b.Buses accelerate faster than cars
• c.A train's large size makes it look farther away and slower than it actually is✓
• d.Crossing gates always work perfectly

Because of their large size, trains appear to be moving slower and to be farther away than they really are. This optical illusion causes drivers to misjudge the time available to cross. Never try to beat a train; if you see one coming, wait.

The safest practice regarding stopping distance for a train is to remember that a train:

• a.Can stop within a few feet
• b.Can swerve to avoid the bus
• c.Always sounds its horn in time
• d.Cannot stop quickly and may take a mile or more to halt✓

A loaded freight train may need a mile or more to stop, so it cannot stop for a bus on the tracks. The responsibility to stay clear rests entirely with the bus driver. Assume the train cannot and will not stop for you.

After the bus has safely crossed the tracks, the driver should:

• a.Continue smoothly and get fully clear of the crossing✓
• b.Stop just past the rails to check students
• c.Reverse to confirm the tracks are clear
• d.Turn on the red loading lights

Once across, keep moving to get the entire bus completely clear of the crossing and out of any second track's path. Do not stop immediately past the tracks where the rear of the bus could still be in danger. Then resume normal driving.

A driver approaching a railroad crossing should turn off or reduce:

• a.The parking brake
• b.Radios, fans, and other noise so the driver can listen for a train✓
• c.The mirrors
• d.The stop arm

Before a crossing the driver should silence or reduce noise from the radio, fans, and heaters and quiet the students so a train's horn or bell can be heard. Opening the door and window further improves hearing. Listening is a key part of the stop-look-listen routine.