ACR CLRED ONTO ACTIVE RWY WITH ANOTHER ACFT IN POS AND HOLD.

Narrative

FOR PERFORMANCE REASONS; WE REQUESTED A DEP FROM RWY 24L. ATIS HAD RWY 28 DEPARTING; RWY 24L LNDG. OUR TAXI CLRNC WAS GIVEN FROM 'SPOT TO TXWY U; DOWN RWY 28 TO HOLD SHORT OF RWY 24L.' AS WE APCHED TXWY U; WE NOTICED AN RJ HOLDING IN POS FULL LENGTH; LIGHTS OFF. FOR US TO TAXI ONTO RWY 28 IN FRONT OF THE RJ DIDN'T LOOK RIGHT. WE HELD WELL SHORT OF THE INTXN HOLD LINE AND QUERIED GND AGAIN ABOUT OUR CLRNC. HE SAID 'PROCEED DOWN RWY 28 TO HOLD SHORT OF RWY 24L.' WE MOVED SLOWLY FORWARD AND STOPPED AGAIN WITH OUR ACFT NOSE OVER THE INTXN LINE (NOT THE NOSEWHEEL) 30 FT SHORT OF RWY 28 EDGE. WE ASKED THE CTLR ABOUT THE RJ. THE RJ'S LIGHTS ILLUMINATED AND HE BEGAN HIS TKOF ROLL. THE CTLR THEN SAID; 'AFTER THE RJ; TAXI ONTO RWY 28 TO HOLD SHORT OF RWY 24L.' THIS SEEMED LIKE AN INCURSION OR NEAR INCURSION WORTHY OF A RPT AND CAPT IRREGULARITY. WE SHOULD HAVE ASKED GND CTL SPECIFICALLY ABOUT THE RJ HOLDING IN POS AT FIRST SIGHTING WHETHER OR NOT WE SHOULD ENTER RWY 28. DURING RWY 24/28 OPS IN CLE; THE TWR NOT GND CTL SHOULD MAINTAIN CTL OF ALL RWY OPS. GND CTL SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED USE OF AN ACTIVE RWY FOR TAXI PURPOSES.