Railroad crossing gate

How to read it

The MUTCD treats the gate as part of the flashing-light signal, not a device of its own. When a train is detected the lights start first; the arm starts down no sooner than 3 seconds later, is level at least 5 seconds before the train arrives, and stays down while the train is on the crossing. The arm has at least three red lights: the one nearest the tip burns steadily and the others flash with the signal. The mechanism is designed to fail in the down position. Florida's handbook says it is against the law to drive around or under a crossing gate, whether it is down or being raised or lowered, and Michigan's says not to drive through, around or under an activated crossing system, nor to go once the train has passed until the gates are up and the lights and bells have stopped. This page describes the national standard and isn’t legal advice; what a driver must do at a crossing is set by state law.

Also searched as: crossing arm, railroad gate.

Stripes and height

Both the 2009 and 2023 editions of the MUTCD call for vertical red and white stripes every 16 inches, reflective on both sides; older arms with diagonal stripes may be replaced to match the others at the same crossing. The 11th edition (2023) adds guidance that a lowered arm sit 3.5 to 4.5 feet above the road, and rewords the timing so the arm stays down until the train has completely cleared the crossing.

Gates in quiet zones

Every public crossing in a new quiet zone, where trains do not routinely sound their horn, must have both flashing lights and gates, under the FRA's rule (49 CFR 222.35). See the NO TRAIN HORN plaque.