Ohio Code 4511.61 – Stop signs at dangerous highway crossings over railroad tracks
(A) As used in this section, “active grade crossing warning device” means signs, signals, gates, or other protective devices erected or installed at a public highway-railway crossing at common grade and activated by an electrical circuit.
Attorney's Note
Under the Ohio Code, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:| Class | Prison | Fine |
|---|---|---|
| Misdemeanor of the third degree | up to 60 days | up to $500 |
| Misdemeanor of the fourth degree | up to 30 days | up to $250 |
| Minor misdemeanor | up to $150 |
Terms Used In Ohio Code 4511.61
- highway: means the entire width between the boundary lines of every way open to the use of the public as a thoroughfare for purposes of vehicular travel. See Ohio Code 4511.01
- Local authorities: means every county, municipal, and other local board or body having authority to adopt police regulations under the constitution and laws of this state. See Ohio Code 4511.01
- Motor vehicle: means every vehicle propelled or drawn by power other than muscular power or power collected from overhead electric trolley wires, except motorized bicycles, electric bicycles, road rollers, traction engines, power shovels, power cranes, and other equipment used in construction work and not designed for or employed in general highway transportation, hole-digging machinery, well-drilling machinery, ditch-digging machinery, farm machinery, and trailers designed and used exclusively to transport a boat between a place of storage and a marina, or in and around a marina, when drawn or towed on a street or highway for a distance of no more than ten miles and at a speed of twenty-five miles per hour or less. See Ohio Code 4511.01
- Railroad: means a carrier of persons or property operating upon rails placed principally on a private right-of-way. See Ohio Code 4511.01
- state: means the state of Ohio. See Ohio Code 1.59
- Streetcar: means a car, other than a railroad train, for transporting persons or property, operated upon rails principally within a street or highway. See Ohio Code 4511.01
- Trackless trolley: means every car that collects its power from overhead electric trolley wires and that is not operated upon rails or tracks. See Ohio Code 4511.01
- Traffic: means pedestrians, ridden or herded animals, vehicles, streetcars, trackless trolleys, and other devices, either singly or together, while using for purposes of travel any highway or private road open to public travel. See Ohio Code 4511.01
- Vehicle: means every device, including a motorized bicycle and an electric bicycle, in, upon, or by which any person or property may be transported or drawn upon a highway, except that "vehicle" does not include any motorized wheelchair, any electric personal assistive mobility device, any low-speed micromobility device, any personal delivery device as defined in section 4511. See Ohio Code 4511.01
- Whoever: includes all persons, natural and artificial; partners; principals, agents, and employees; and all officials, public or private. See Ohio Code 1.02
(B) The department of transportation and local authorities in their respective jurisdictions, with the approval of the department, may designate dangerous highway crossings over railroad tracks whether on state, county, or township highways or on streets or ways within municipal corporations, and erect stop signs thereat.
(C)(1) The department and local authorities shall erect stop signs at a railroad highway grade crossing in either of the following circumstances:
(a) New warning devices that are not active grade crossing warning devices are being installed at the grade crossing, and railroad crossbucks were the only warning devices at the grade crossing prior to the installation of the new warning devices.
(b) The grade crossing is constructed after July 1, 2013, and only warning devices that are not active grade crossing warning devices are installed at the grade crossing.
(2) Division (C)(1) of this section does not apply to a railroad highway grade crossing that the director of transportation has exempted from that division because of traffic flow or other considerations or factors.
(D) When stop signs are erected pursuant to division (B) or (C) of this section, the operator of any vehicle, streetcar, or trackless trolley shall stop within fifty, but not less than fifteen, feet from the nearest rail of the railroad tracks and shall exercise due care before proceeding across such grade crossing.
(E) Except as otherwise provided in this division, whoever violates division (D) of this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor. If, within one year of the offense, the offender previously has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to one predicate motor vehicle or traffic offense, whoever violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the fourth degree. If, within one year of the offense, the offender previously has been convicted of two or more predicate motor vehicle or traffic offenses, whoever violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the third degree.
If the offender commits the offense while distracted and the distracting activity is a contributing factor to the commission of the offense, the offender is subject to the additional fine established under section 4511.991 of the Revised Code.
The Legislative Service Commission presents the text of this section as a composite of the section as amended by multiple acts of the General Assembly. This presentation recognizes the principle stated in R.C. 1.52(B) that amendments are to be harmonized if reasonably capable of simultaneous operation.