11 cars trapped between barriers. From 21 November: three months without a licence
Trapped on a Polish level crossing? Learn how to escape immediately and which offences will trigger a three-month licence suspension from 21 November 2026.
Between 21 June and 19 August 2026, police recorded 12 dangerous incidents at the level crossing on Helska Street in Puck. In 11 cases, cars were trapped between closed barriers. One barrier was damaged. These were not all accidents in the strict sense, but every incident created the conditions for a collision with a train.
The immediate answer is simple. If the car can move, do not wait for the barrier to rise. Leave the tracks at once. If a barrier blocks the exit, drive through it. Barriers at crossings managed by PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe are designed with an emergency breakaway feature.
The car moves? Get out, even through the barrier
A closed barrier is in front of you, another is behind you, and the car still works. Do not get out to inspect the mechanism. Do not reverse blindly or waste time guessing which direction a train may come from. Choose the route that lets you clear the whole crossing fastest and move. If the barrier prevents escape, push through it with the vehicle.
This emergency action does not make the earlier entry lawful. It protects life after the situation has already become dangerous.
The car will not move? Everyone gets out
If the engine has stopped, the vehicle is stuck or crash damage prevents it from moving, follow a different order:
- 1Get every person out immediately.
- 2Move away from the tracks to a safe place.
- 3Call 112.
- 4Give the crossing number from the yellow sticker if you can read it without returning to danger.
At PLK-managed crossings, the yellow sticker is placed on the track side, for example on the St Andrew's cross or the barrier drive housing. It contains a unique nine-digit crossing identifier. This lets the 112 operator locate the incident quickly and alert railway staff so trains can be stopped or slowed. Do not assume that every crossing in Poland has a PLK sticker, because not every crossing is managed by PLK.
One check prevents most of these incidents
Before the tracks, look beyond the lights and barriers. Check the space on the far side. Enter only when the whole vehicle, including a trailer, can leave the crossing immediately. A moving queue does not guarantee space. A raised barrier is not permission to enter while the red signal is still flashing.
From 21 November: a fine, points and a three-month licence suspension
Article 97a of Poland's Petty Offences Code already covers driving around lowered barriers, entering while they are descending or before they are fully raised, entering on a red signal and entering without room to continue. The statutory fine is at least PLN 2,000. The fixed-penalty tariff sets PLN 2,000, or PLN 4,000 for a repeat offence within two years. A separate penalty-points tariff assigns 15 points.
From 21 November 2026, a driving-licence suspension will be added. It covers four situations:
- driving around a lowered barrier or half-barrier;
- entering after the barriers have started descending or before they have finished rising;
- passing a signal or other device showing red, flashing red or two alternately flashing red lights;
- entering without room to continue beyond the tracks.
This is not limited to a deliberate slalom around barriers. It also catches a common queueing mistake: following the car ahead without making sure your own vehicle can clear the crossing completely.
Police retain the licence; the starosta issues the decision
After detecting the offence, Police retain the licence and send the information through the central driver register to the starosta, the county authority responsible for licences. The starosta has 21 days after receiving the information to issue a decision. It covers three months and is immediately enforceable. The period normally runs from the retention date; if the document was already held for another reason, it starts on the decision date.
If the case goes to court and is not finally concluded within three months, the Act provides for automatic return. The ordinary end of the three-month period is also recorded automatically in the register when the statutory technical conditions are met.
Driving during the suspension can cost five years of entitlement
Driving a motor vehicle despite the decision leads to revocation of the driving entitlement for five years from the date the driving is detected. Afterwards, simply collecting a document is not enough: the person must again meet all requirements imposed on a first-time licence applicant.
The amendment also changes Poland's Criminal Code. A conviction for causing a traffic catastrophe under Article 173 now requires a driving ban of at least three years. A conviction for creating an immediate danger of a catastrophe under Article 174 also requires a ban, but the amendment does not attach the separate three-year minimum to that offence. These criminal measures are different from the administrative suspension for the crossing offence.
Remember two instructions. A working car between the barriers: clear the tracks immediately and break through the barrier if it blocks the exit. A disabled car: get everyone out, move away and call 112. The safest decision comes before entry, when you wait until there is enough free space for the whole vehicle beyond the tracks.