The goal is to provide a guidance document for users who understand general engineering and operational concepts of highway-rail grade crossings. The report serves as a reference to aid in decisions to install traffic control devices or otherwise improve such crossings. Additional references are provided as resource for further information.

The report discusses a number of existing laws, regulations and policies of the FHWA and FRA concerning highway-rail grade crossings and railroad operations, driver needs concerning various sight distance, and highway and rail system operational requirements and functional classification. There is an extensive description of passive and active traffic control devices, including supplemental devices used in conjunction with active controls. Traffic control devices proposed in the Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) for the upcoming MUTCD arc listed, together with a few experimental devices. An appendix provides limited discussion on the complex topic of interconnection and preemption of traffic signals near highway-rail grade crossings. There is also discussion concerning closure, grade separation and consideration for installing new grade crossings. A glossary defines some less familiar and technical terms. (Please note that the term grade crossings is synonymous with both the terms "highway-rail grade crossings" and "highway-rail intersections" in this document.)