When did driveways become public thoroughfares?

March 25, 2017, 06:28 PM

Live in a good part of town, but twice in the last few weeks that we know of we've had cars pull up into our driveway. There is no way to mistake it for a public road.

The first car was full of twenty somethings who pulled away before anything could be ascertained.

Tonight it was a different car. Went out to investigate, and it was an Indian couple. The husband was in the passenger seat. When she rolled down the driver's window he said he ws "showing his wife". I said, "this is a private drive, so move along". Slowly they did.

There is no justifiable reason to use my driveway, other than perhaps a quick turnaround, emphasis on "quick".

It's all well lit and there are cameras. What's with people?

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"Of all tyrannies, a tyranny exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It may be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron's cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end, for they do so with the approval of their own conscience." -- C.S. Lewis

March 25, 2017, 07:27 PM

ZSMICHAEL

quote:
Live in a good part of town

Maybe that is a clue. Best advice is to talk to your neighbors and see what they think.

March 25, 2017, 07:34 PM

DSgrouse

Claymore deterrent

March 25, 2017, 08:00 PM

MooneyP226

Check real estate and air b-n-b type listings. Perhaps someone's setting up a scam to "rent your home" but just rip people off.

Especially if he was "showing his wife" something in particular- perhaps they thought something was for sale or rent.

I've heard of similar.

Or, it could be aliens. Who knows?!?!

March 25, 2017, 08:14 PM

ChuckFinley

[QUOTE]Originally posted by MooneyP226:
Check real estate and air b-n-b type listings. Perhaps someone's setting up a scam to "rent your home" but just rip people off.

Especially if he was "showing his wife" something in particular- perhaps they thought something was for sale or rent.
I've heard of similar.

Or, it could be aliens. Who knows?!?![/

Good thought. Nothing came up. I'm aware these are probably innocent, but not necessarily so.

March 25, 2017, 11:21 PM

cparktd

I get one almost every week day. More on weekends.

Small tourist type town, about 500 residents. We are the last house going out of town.
People ride through town then turn around in my drive and go back. Doesn't hurt a thing, and I don't mind if they stay on the drive and not the grass. I usually wave to them if I'm outside. They usually get gone pretty quick, but they may notice the gun on my hip

The dog usually lets us know every time someone pulled in the drive.
Sometimes if they hang around for a bit its because they are on their cell phone. No problem with that either, at least they stopped and aren't driving and talking.

I have had some ask for directions.

March 25, 2017, 11:28 PM

Hound Dog

Maybe you had a tree, landscaping style/scheme, or architectural feature they were looking at. When my wife and I built our last house, we drove around looking for landscaping ideas. I took photos of some (trying to be discreet), and that probanly looked suspicious to anybody who may have noticed. . .

It almost sounds too blatant for somebody casing a potential crime, but criminals come in all IQ ranges. . .

March 26, 2017, 06:37 AM

Redleg06

Rubber driveway spikes?

https://drivewayspikes.com

March 26, 2017, 08:33 AM

Chris Anchor

We had the same problem as our driveway is near a road so we were always getting the lost driving around our circle. Then our neighbor thought that our driveway was an old county road and started using it. I put in a gate, he drove around it, OK next we put in an electric gate that you can't drive around. Both problems solved. I really like the gate but it was a few dollars, the rubber spikes are really neat. Chris

March 26, 2017, 09:05 AM

cne32507

The wife is a new driver. He was showing her how to make a 3 point turn.

March 26, 2017, 10:08 AM

V-Tail

quote:
Originally posted by Hound Dog:
Maybe you had a tree, landscaping style/scheme, or architectural feature they were looking at. When my wife and I built our last house, we drove around looking for landscaping ideas.

There is a house in my neighborhood that has an interesting front yard treatment. It looks really nice, and it looks like very low maintenance.

I liked the idea, but I do not want to look like a trespasser, so I waited until one day I saw the homeowner outside. I parked on the street, walked up to him, told him that I liked his yard and asked his permission to take some photos as my wife and I were trying to decide what to do with our front yard.

March 26, 2017, 11:45 AM

the_sandman_454

I use driveways to turn around when I've missed a turn to get someplace. When I do this, however, it won't be in town where a block is a mere few hundred feet or so, and it's quick enough to just go around the block to get back to where I needed to be.

Out in the country is the only time I'll turn around using somebody's driveway, since just going around the block takes me on a 3+ mile journey out of my way to get to where I needed to be.

March 26, 2017, 12:41 PM

motor59

I see this a lot.
Human nature being what it is, most people will turn left into a driveway rather than right, all other factors being equal.

My house is the first on the left, as is my driveway. There are two driveways closer to the intersection on the right side of the street, but they get very little u-turn traffic. I get the bulk of it.
What makes it interesting is that my street is a minor shortcut that avoids a traffic light controlled intersection. After an accident years ago, that involved a child struck by a car, left turns onto my street were banned from 4-6pm M-F. That doesn't stop a steady stream of people from doing it, so the local PD regularly stations a few officers up the block to hand out tickets.
If I'm outside and encounter a 'visitor' during that time frame, I'll often walk over and engage them in conversation, giving the officer time to walk up the block.

March 26, 2017, 07:17 PM

jimmy123x

The worst I see, is I live on a corner lot, the street on the side of my house is a busy through street. It has a roundabout every 700 ft. Sure enough, if I sit out front, someone makes a u turn every 10 minutes and runs over the strip of my lawn half the time. The idiots could simply drive 300' more and go around the roundabout and exit going back the way they came from.

March 26, 2017, 11:32 PM

newtoSig765

Some years back my girlfriend and I were in our front yard talking to visitors when an old Chevy Suburban pulled into our circular driveway, cut ACROSS THE FUCKING LAWN and exited via the other side of the circle. We were so shocked that I only got a partial plate to give the cops, they were never caught, so we had to eat a couple hundred dollars' worth of ruts in the ground. It was early enough in the spring that the Suburban left 5 inch deep grooves for nearly 100 feet.

I put down some old wooden planks with nails in them, long enough to do the job but short enough that they were easy to move when I mowed the lawn.

--------------------------
Every normal man must be tempted, at times, to spit on his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats.
-- H L Mencken

I always prefer reality when I can figure out what it is.
-- JALLEN 10/18/18

March 27, 2017, 09:04 AM

Deputy 617

quote:
Originally posted by V-Tail:
quote:
Originally posted by Hound Dog:
Maybe you had a tree, landscaping style/scheme, or architectural feature they were looking at. When my wife and I built our last house, we drove around looking for landscaping ideas.
There is a house in my neighborhood that has an interesting front yard treatment. It looks really nice, and it looks like very low maintenance.

I liked the idea, but I do not want to look like a trespasser, so I waited until one day I saw the homeowner outside. I parked on the street, walked up to him, told him that I liked his yard and asked his permission to take some photos as my wife and I were trying to decide what to do with our front yard.

Proper etiquette. Very nice. If they're still around, tell your mom and dad thanks for teaching you the right way. Regardless... Teach all the kids in your life to behave with such respect for others.

March 27, 2017, 05:27 PM

Aquabird

I live on a state route and have a circle driveway. People pull in and pull around and go back out the way they came. They basically use it for a turnaround. When we got another car, we started parking one car in that U drive. The drive does go past the garage to my pole barn garage and we park back there and in both garages. But when we started parking in front where they drive thru, they just started driving thru my yard.
So if you think using your drive is bad, how about if they used your lawn to pull thru?

March 27, 2017, 09:51 PM

imprezaguy02

quote:
Originally posted by motor59:
I see this a lot.
Human nature being what it is, most people will turn left into a driveway rather than right, all other factors being equal.

My house is the first on the left, as is my driveway. There are two driveways closer to the intersection on the right side of the street, but they get very little u-turn traffic. I get the bulk of it.
What makes it interesting is that my street is a minor shortcut that avoids a traffic light controlled intersection. After an accident years ago, that involved a child struck by a car, left turns onto my street were banned from 4-6pm M-F. That doesn't stop a steady stream of people from doing it, so the local PD regularly stations a few officers up the block to hand out tickets.
If I'm outside and encounter a 'visitor' during that time frame, I'll often walk over and engage them in conversation, giving the officer time to walk up the block.

I would venture to say they turn left into your drive, because you aren't supposed to back across two lanes when making a U-turn and pulling into a drive.