This is my first post…so I am not sure what to post / say / information needed. But the gist of my request is that our community, Willbrook Plantation, has two entry gates. One has a guard on duty and one is for residents only. The problem is that some visitors and usually delivery trucks try to come into the community via the Residents Only Gate…and they cannot get in. Once they get to the wrong entrance, they need to back up and turn around and head to gate that has a security guard. If a resident lives near the main gate, then Waze routes visitors and contractor correctly. However, I live near the Residents Only gate. When a contractor puts in my address, Waze tries to bring them in the residents only gate, because it is the most logical one for my address. This change is not only for me, about half of the houses are closer to the residents only gate and they all have the same issue as I do.
My question…is there a way to flag the residents only gate as no public access? Residents would know that they can get in that gate, even if Waze says it is blocked.
The two gates, to get into the community are as follows…
- Main Gate with a guard - intersection of Willbrook Blvd and Tidewater Dr. This is the way that everyone should be routed to enter Willbrook Plantation.
- Residents only gate - NO public access - intersection of Kings River Rd and Heston Point Dr.
If a truck or contractor gets into the community via the main gate they are allowed to leave via the residents only gate. So the residents only gate should be flagged to allow access back out onto Kings River Rd.
Please let me know if you need additional information
Hi,
Thank you for your report on this issue. Unfortunately, Waze does not have the ability to filter which drivers can use a certain gate. Since Waze is primarily designed for local use, we route in favor of the residents who live within the gated community.
Thank you,
Will
Thank you for the response, but one more thought. I don’t need Waze to filter who can access and who cannot. There would be no way Waze could tell. But can Waze block that access for all? The home owners would know they can use it and we would not need Waze to direct us to our house. The community does not have short term rentals, so only full time owners use that gate. If the gate was flagged as No Access for All, that would solve so many headaches of large truck pulling into a small area.
I have personally experienced Waze route me away from a gate I knew I could get thru. I knew the road existed, I knew the gate was always open, but Waze refused to bring me to that gate. The gate is just a few miles from here. Can you look at how it is configured to see if the same rules could apply to my gate?
It is an unnamed road that goes between Old Plantation Dr and Camden Cir. This road is also in Pawleys Island. I can see the road on Waze, but when I look at Google Maps, the road is not shown. I am sure that has something to do with it. The way Waze treats this unnamed road would be perfect for our gate.
I understand that your first answer is still probably the same answer for this request, but if you could give me 2 more minutes of your time, I would greatly appreciate it.
Thank You,
Dan
Hi,
Our goal is to prevent unauthorized traffic from being directed through the parameters of a private community. Unauthorized traffic are drivers who are not driving to a destination within the community. At this time, Waze can only filter a gate’s use by the user’s destination and cannot account for every user’s relation to the community. We leave it up to a resident to inform a guest that a certain gate is restricted.
Unfortunately, specialty gates will have a losing group since residents would like the quickest option while visitors would like to see their allowed option. In this situation, we map for the “majority [group of] drivers” which means that we route based on which group is likely to more frequently request a route into a community. The groups in this case are residents vs visitors. Since this is a residential community, we opt to favor the residents. While it seems odd that residents would need directions to their own house, Waze is a unique navigation service because most routes requested are from users going about their usual day-to-day activities and/or places such as driving to and from work, grocery store, school, medical appointments, etc.
Concerning the road between Old Plantation Dr and Camden Cir, I will need to check with user who added it to see why they mapped it with no routing allowed. This is usually not an accepted practice unless the gate is never opened for anyone including residents.
Will
Will,
Thank you for the detailed response. We, as home owners, do tell delivery services and contractors not to use that gate…but they do not always listen. I was hoping for a little help from Waze to force them to listen to what we told them. I do understand your point about the majority group. However, if you do find anything interesting about that other gate…I am all ears!!!
Thank You,
Dan