Snaps of the commute

As I biked home from work this afternoon, I was approaching a railroad crossing. All was quiet. I had not heard a train horn off in the distance.

 But as I got close to the tracks, the bells started clanging, red lights started flashing, and the gates went down. Seconds later, this small red maintenance vehicle (a ballast tamper?) rolled through the crossing.

 You never know what you'll see.