My driveway seems to be the local turnaround. Any suggestions?

03coloradowrangler

TJ Addict
Supporting Member
Joined
Jun 25, 2019
Messages
1,142
Location
Mid Michigan
Been having a reoccurring issue with people using my driveway as a turnaround day/night... as in driving all the way to the house and turning around to go a different direction on the road as well as unsolicited sales/ religious check-ins and other and I would like to "chain off" the bottom of the driveway to reduce/prevent "visitors" but wanted to bounce some ideas off others. also im fine with the hassle of unhooking and attaching the chain as I come and go, I just dont want visitors. not interested in locking it as I have farmers that also use the driveway for access to field/barn if they dont use the field access on the other side of the barn.

few days ago example

todays example (dont know why it skipped during the recording) no note or anything left on the door either.

I am on a busy main road and I understand why people dont want to back out but there is a business to the north of me within eyesight with plenty of room to turn around & public parking to the south of me within eyesight again with plenty of room to turn around. not sure why im the convenient spot for everyone.

anyways, im considering setting some 4x4 or similar post on each side of the driveway a cars length away from the road and draping a neon colored plastic chain potentially with some reflective foil tied to it between them across the driveway. anyone see any issues that I potentially may run into? insurance claim or some technical fuckery someone may potentially come after me for if they just so happen to drive through it and damage their own vehicle for entering private property out of their own convenience to turn around?
 
  • Like
Reactions: matkal
I actually have 2 legal street addresses. city annexed land a few years ago so I have a prior but still active address and a current active address. the vast majority of activity in the driveway is typically a pull in at the approach and back out and go back the direction they came but I think the few that do pull all the way up dont want to attempt backing out (I wouldn't want to back out either).

its farm fields on the north and south of me and my house as the island smack in-between. I get the gps thing though, ive followed one on 2tracks in the woods and it took me to someones back yard whom prompted me to turn around rather than cut through their driveway.
 
ezgif_com-gif-maker-3_ufXCVif9ae.gif
 
That lady in the white mall crawler mini-van seemed to be looking for something she may never find.

I don't think you'd be responsible for anything if you put up a couple posts and a visible chain but I do wonder how many people will just drive around it if it's not attached to a fence or a wall. They could just pull in on one side and go back out on the other side and never need to stop and back up.
 
If your not driving any show collector cars then an unannounced bump gate is simple drive thru gate with a light tension return and your farmer friends can just drive thru.
 
a gate / bump gate would be optimal in many ways with visibility included. driveway is ~16' wide so 2 10' gates is about $240. gate option though would require more of a permanent sturdy post than post just a few feet down for draping a chain. kinda want this to be semi permanent rather than permanent.

and the thought has come to mind about people driving around whatever goes down by the road but alot of the people doing it are 100% city people and im sure many would be afraid to drive through grass.

ive tossed around the idea of leaving a handful of fencing staples at the bottom of the driveway... but im sure id get a few in my tires too :ROFLMAO:
 
  • Like
Reactions: TJ4Jim
One of my neighbors uses
a gate / bump gate would be optimal in many ways with visibility included. driveway is ~16' wide so 2 10' gates is about $240. gate option though would require more of a permanent sturdy post than post just a few feet down for draping a chain. kinda want this to be semi permanent rather than permanent.

and the thought has come to mind about people driving around whatever goes down by the road but alot of the people doing it are 100% city people and im sure many would be afraid to drive through grass.

ive tossed around the idea of leaving a handful of fencing staples at the bottom of the driveway... but im sure id get a few in my tires too :ROFLMAO:

One of my neighbors has bound carpet samples that he gently taps with his truck and pops thru, UPS and Fedex no issues.
 
We had an asphalt driveway when I was a kid and had the same problem. My dad drove some nails in some boards and painted it all black and laid them in the driveway. 🤣 To my knowledge, no one ever ran over them. He could be an ornery old cuss but was a good dad.
 
As zorba said, sign first. Either no trespassing or no turn around. If that doesn’t work, the cheapo plastic chain will most likely work
 
just got done mowing lawn, pulled around from the back of the house and there was a car backed in at the bottom of the driveway. both occupants got out , one waived at me as they were switching passenger and driver.

ill probably pick up some signs at the depot today. I just dont want it to appear gaudy either.

I need to contact miss dig to have them mark underground utilities before I go digging holes. power poles are overhead at the driveway approach and I have underground power, gas & cable feeding to the house.
 
  • Like
Reactions: matkal and RINC
So I have had "private driveway no turn around" signs at the road for a few months now which seems to have reduced the frequency of turn arounds to about 3 per week now.

lastnight after work I had a as my coworker calls it a "window licker bus" turn around. I seen her pull in at the bottom of the driveway when I was outside and she realized she couldn't see to back out and was giving me the finger signal swinging it in a circle signal to turn around.. I responded back with the shooing hand signal but she insisted and drove up to turn around anyways.

IMG_6116.jpeg


The bus pissed me off so I went out and bought some 4x4's and some yellow plastic chain lastnight. Had a car a few days before the bus swing a wide lazy turning radius circle through the grass rather then backing up at the T shape turnoff leading towards the barn.

IMG_6117.jpeg


We shall see what the new results will be with it chained off.. whether they just drive around it, unlink it or just drive through it... or if see it plain as day as they are approaching and decide to use the neighbors driveway instead.
Dealing with the chain now.. it does suck. I think I will be using the farm field access occasionally and coming into the driveway around the side and back of the barn rather than the driveway itself. the farm field access does occasionally get some turn around traffic but its quite rare and somewhat hidden behind a tree line.

Im just frustrated not knowing if whomever comes all the way up to the house is here for me or is just turning around. I have learned though.. it sucks being on a main road, but I dont own the place.. just rent it & im learning some city life lessons since growing up In the woods and not ever seeing anyone.
 
  • Face Palm
Reactions: matkal
just rent it

Ah, you should have led with that. No wonder you didn't want to drop a couple thousand on electric gates.
I am in the middle of nowhere,but its on a coastal tourist route and have had some crazy encounters involving the sheriff,bear spray and my glock.
After i put in a latching electric gate it has been exactly zero crazies coming up looking for elvis,Gas,cell phone service, or who knows what.

I just had to do a 2am run to a gals house a couple nights ago because some nut job was running around her house screaming at nothing.she has no gate. There is a moral to these stories...
 
  • Wow
  • Like
Reactions: BlueC and matkal
Ah, you should have led with that. No wonder you didn't want to drop a couple thousand on electric gates.
I am in the middle of nowhere,but its on a coastal tourist route and have had some crazy encounters involving the sheriff,bear spray and my glock.
After i put in a latching electric gate it has been exactly zero crazies coming up looking for elvis,Gas,cell phone service, or who knows what.

I just had to do a 2am run to a gals house a couple nights ago because some nut job was running around her house screaming at nothing.she has no gate. There is a moral to these stories...

Dude, you can't just leave us hanging like that! 😂
Spill it 🍿