What does the railway crossbuck sign mean?

This sign stands at the crossing itself, with no gates and no flashing lights. What does it require?

Giving way to any train, because a train cannot stop or steer for you

This sign marks the crossing and gives the train the right of way at all times. With no gate to tell you, the checking is yours: look along the track both ways, and remember that a long train needs far more than a road length to stop.

This sign stands at the crossing itself, with no gates and no flashing lights. What does it require of you?

Giving way to any train, which means slowing enough to look and listen and being ready to stop

The crossbuck works like a yield sign for the railway, so the duty is to give way to a train rather than to stop by default. A train cannot give way to you: a loaded freight train needs far more distance to stop than any road vehicle, so the whole job of avoiding the crash belongs to the driver.

This sign stands beside the road right where the surface changes. What are you at?

A railway crossing

The crossed arms mark the railway crossing itself, not a warning some distance back. Slow ready to stop, look and listen both ways, and start across only once you can see that you will clear the tracks without stopping on them. A train cannot steer around you and needs a very long distance to stop.

You are at a rural crossing marked by this sign, with no lights and no gates, and a train is visible in the distance coming toward the crossing. What do you do?

Stop back from the rails and wait for the train to pass and the crossing to clear

A train is far bigger and closing far faster than it looks from a distance, and it cannot brake to avoid you. This sign marks the crossing itself, and it means you give way to the train every time, with or without lights and gates. Wait clear of the rails until the train has gone and you can see that the way is open.

A train has just cleared the crossing marked by this sign and the way ahead looks open. What should you do?

Wait, look both ways again, and check for a second train on another track

A passing train hides everything behind it, including a train coming the other way on a second track. The moment the last car clears is exactly when a driver is most likely to move off into something they never saw.

You are waiting at this sign and a train has just passed in front of you. What must you check before you cross?

That no second train is coming on another track, and that the far side is clear for you

A passing train hides a second one and drowns out the sound of it, which is why so many crossings are struck moments after the first train clears. Look and listen along every track before you move, and start across only when you can finish without stopping.