New York Laws
Part 3 - Transportation Services
3636 - Passage of School Buses Across Railroad Crossings.

§ 3636. Passage of school buses across railroad crossings. 1. No
school bus transporting pupils between home and school or between
schools which such pupils regularly attend either within or outside the
district which operates or contracts for the operation of such bus, or
transporting pupils for any purpose within such district, shall cross
railroad tracks at grade except at a guarded railroad crossing, unless
the governing body of the school district which operates the bus or
contracts for the operation of the bus shall have adopted, at a regular
meeting after a public hearing thereon, a resolution by which it shall
have determined that the use of a route which would avoid an unguarded
railroad crossing by the school bus would be impracticable.

A copy of any resolution adopted pursuant to the provisions of this
section shall be filed with the department of education and the
department of transportation at their respective offices in the city of
Albany.

2. For the purpose of this section, a guarded railroad crossing shall
be defined as follows:

a. Any railroad crossing having automatic electrically operated gates
that meet the specifications for such gates in the rules and regulations
promulgated by the department of transporation.

b. Any railroad crossing where a member of the approaching train's
crew disembarks from the train which has stopped before the crossing and
positions himself at the crossing to halt traffic while the train
passes. Such procedure must be in accordance with the rules and
regulations promulgated by the department of transportation.

c. Any railroad crossing protected by an automatic warning signal
which meets the specifications in the rules and regulations as
promulgated by the department of transportation.

d. Any railroad crossing protected by one or more persons serving as a
railroad crossing guard.

3. Each school district shall prepare and maintain a map indicating
the intersection with any unguarded railroad crossing of each route used
by a school bus transporting students to and from school either within
or outside the district, or for any purpose within the district, and
shall make such map available for inspection by any resident of the
district at a place designated by the governing body of the district.

4. The commissioner of education shall have the authority to
promulgate such regulations as he shall deem appropriate to implement
the provisions of this section.