(1) A person commits the offense of failure to follow rail crossing procedures for high-risk vehicles if the person takes any vehicle described in this section across any railroad or rail fixed guideway system tracks at grade without doing all of the following:
(a) Stopping the vehicle at a clearly marked stop line or, if there is not a clearly marked stop line, not less than 15 feet nor more than 50 feet from the nearest rail of the railroad or rail fixed guideway system.
(b) While so stopped, listening and looking in both directions along the tracks for approaching trains or rail fixed guideway system vehicles and for signals indicating approaching trains or rail fixed guideway system vehicles.
(c) Proceeding across the tracks after stopping only when such movement can be performed safely in the gear of the motor vehicle that does not require manually changing gears while proceeding.
(d) Proceeding across the tracks without manually changing gears.
(2) This section applies to the following vehicles when moved across railroad or rail fixed guideway system tracks:
(a) A school bus.
(b) A school activity vehicle with a loaded weight of 10,000 pounds or more.
(c) A worker transport bus.
(d) Any bus operated for transporting children to and from church or an activity or function authorized by a church.
(e) Any vehicle used in the transportation of persons for hire by a nonprofit entity.
(f) A commercial bus.
(g) A motor vehicle carrying as a cargo or part of a cargo any explosive substance, inflammable liquids, corrosives or similar substances or any cargo that the Department of Transportation determines to be hazardous. For purposes of this paragraph, the department may only determine a substance to be hazardous by rule. Any rules adopted by the department to determine hazardous substances must be consistent with substances classified as hazardous by the United States Secretary of Transportation.
(h) A tank vehicle, whether loaded or empty, used for the transportation of any hazardous material.
(3) Exemptions to this section are provided under ORS 811.465.
(4) The offense described in this section, failure to follow rail crossing procedures for high-risk vehicles, is a Class B traffic violation. [1983 c.338 §649; 1985 c.16 §318; 1985 c.420 §9; 1989 c.992 §20; 1995 c.383 §72; 1995 c.733 §49; 2001 c.104 §308; 2001 c.492 §4; 2001 c.522 §5; 2015 c.283 §6]