← Road works, level crossings and tramways
Rule 293: Controlled Crossings
Legal requirement — says MUST
Level crossings (rules 291 to 299)
Controlled Crossings. Most crossings have traffic light signals with a steady amber light, twin flashing red stop lights (see ‘Light signals controlling traffic’ and ‘Traffic signs’) and an audible alarm for pedestrians. They may have full, half or no barriers.
- You MUST always obey the flashing red stop lights.
- You MUST stop behind the white line across the road.
- Keep going if you have already crossed the white line when the amber light comes on.
- Do not reverse onto or over a controlled crossing.
- You MUST wait if a train goes by and the red lights continue to flash. This means another train will be passing soon.
- Only cross when the lights go off and barriers open.
- Never zig-zag around half-barriers, they lower automatically because a train is approaching.
- At crossings where there are no barriers, a train is approaching when the lights show.
Why the capitals matter. The Highway Code writes a rule in capitals — MUST or MUST NOT — when it is backed by law, so breaking it is a criminal offence. The rules that do not use capitals are advice.
5 theory test questions on this rule
From the DVSA revision question bank. These are not the questions asked in the real theory test. Each one shows the answer, the explanation, and our own note on why every other option is not it.
Car
- You've stopped at a railway level crossing. What should you do if the red lights continue to flash after a train has gone by? Road and traffic signs
- At traffic lights, what does it mean when the amber light shows on its own? Road and traffic signs
- You've driven up to a pelican crossing. What must you do while the amber light is flashing? Vulnerable road users
- You're waiting at a level crossing. What must you do if a train passes but the lights keep flashing? Rules of the road
- What must you do when the amber light is flashing at a pelican crossing? Attitude