Introduction
1. Definition
A Private Installation or Community is a small to large restricted-access set of regularly navigable roads connected at one or more points to a public road network. The smallest example may be a single private community street protected by a gate. The largest USA installation is White Sands Missile Range at 3,200 square miles, larger than the USA’s smallest state, which includes dirt roads, primary streets and highways. We wish to address such locations because many people work and live within private installations and Waze should be capable of serving their needs as well as preventing erroneous routes through private installations for those who do not have access.
Actual access restriction in these installations or communities is usually implemented by gates or guards that only allow entry by authorized individuals or vehicles. An unmanned means of preventing one-way access could be tire puncture strip that would deflate tires of vehicles going in one direction. In some cases access may be unrestricted by physical means, but may be implemented through patrols, cameras, or other means that would lead to a response to apprehend an unauthorized visitor.
A private installation, particularly larger government facilities, may have nested levels of access control. A particular region of the installation may be excluded to those who have general access to the larger installation. Larger examples may have all types of roads such as primary streets and highways. Smaller examples would only have roads and dirt roads.
2. Purpose
Waze should not automatically route onto or through a private installation unless the source or destination point is within the installation. Figure 1 shows the general concept of a private installation which is embedded in a public road network. In this case there are two access points. Waze should route around the private installation from A to B even though a shorter or faster route might exists through the installation. Waze should also be able to route from A to C or C to A, where C is located within the private installation.
Figure 2 shows that some, usually larger, private installations may have nested levels of access. Waze should be able to route on or off of a private installation at any level of nested access without entering a separate access area of a deeper level. Route A to B illustrates this concept. Additionally, Waze should be able to navigate from a deeper level of nested access to any other point including off the private installation. Route C to D illustrates that concept. Waze should be able to navigate well within a larger installation that has multiple road types.
3. Approach
We suggest two separate approaches for treatment of these installations or communities, one for smaller installations and one for larger installations. Due to the large variability in these installations or communities, the editor may have to adjust or combine approaches based upon the details of the particular installation or community. Therefore benefits and detriments of listed approaches are provided as guidance.
4. Background Testing
Significant testing of these suggestions have been tested on actual private installations of various types and discussed in the Waze Forum.
Smaller Installations
1. Definition - Smaller Installations
Smaller installations are those private installations or communities with few roads that can be easily represented by only normal street types and that have a single level of access control.
2. Examples:
- Small gated/private community
- Gated country club
- Private school
- Small closed commercial campus
Potential installations we suggest you not include:
- Paid parking areas, even after a pay-station/gate
3. Preferred Approach: Smaller Installations
Mark all roads internal to these areas as private roads.
Benefits of this approach are simplicity and a more robust solution to naïve editor error. If a new connection is made to this private road network from the public road network, no additional traffic will accidentally route through the region. In addition, manual locks are not usually required which allows other editors to more easily make changes.
Detriments of this approach are that no dirt roads, primary streets, or highways may be identified and multiple levels of access control are difficult or impossible.
Larger Installations
1. Definition: Larger Installations
Larger installations are those private installations or communities that are large enough such that there is some reason to have primary streets or highways or because that installation requires multiple levels of access control (installations within installations).
2. Examples:
- Military base
- Government installation
- Huge hunting lodge and hunting grounds, ranches, etc.
- Large closed commercial campus
- Airport restricted road network
Potential installations you not include:
- Publically accessible roads in a theme park even after a pay-station/gate. (Generally do not include these roads unless Waze would normally route through them inappropriately. If Waze does route through a theme park as a short cut, then mark these areas with one of the treatments below.)
3. Larger Installation Treatment common attributes:
The general approach is to isolate the entire installation from the public road network with private roads or one-way exit roads. This will prevent Waze from routing through a private installation unless the route begins or ends on the installation. All roads within an installation will be of type appropriate for that road (dirt road, street, primary street, minor highway, major highway, freeway). In order to prevent novice editors from changing these access controls, the private and one-way roads, and any necessary connecting roads should be locked at a level as high as appropriate or possible.
Benefits of the two following treatments are allowing full use of road types within the installation resulting in better routing and a simple logical notion that the private segments (or one-way segments) represent the gates or guards on a road protecting entrance into an installation. It also allows nested levels of access control. The approach for smaller installations does not allow this to occur.
Detriments of the two following treatments are that the private road segments isolating the installation from the public road network and internal nested installations should be locked to prevent change by novice editors. In addition, a novice user could connect one or more new roads between the installation and the public road network that would potentially begin to have Waze route through installation roads that are not accessible; however, this would require two such errors by the novice and should result in URs and those areas could be repaired and locked in the future.
4. Preferred Treatment: Larger Installations
Each entrance to the installation should be connected by a one-way split road entering and exiting the installation. The entering one-way road will include one private road segment. The exiting one-way road will be of one segment using the appropriate type of that road (usually street, primary street, or minor highway). This structure often mimics the actual lanes for such installations. The private road segments, one way exiting segments, and surrounding roads should be locked with a high enough level lock to prevent novice editors from deleting or changing this control.
Nested private installations (wholly within another private installation) will likewise be isolated in the same manner or Alternate Treatment from the larger installation.
Benefits of this preferred treatment is that it allows the exiting road to be of any type and of no penalty to routing out of the installation.
A detriment of this treatment is a more complex structure than the alternate treatment for larger installations.
5. Alternate Treatment: Larger Installations
An alternate approach for these installations is to connect to public road networks through one short private two-way road segment at each entrance or exit to the installation. This effectively isolates the entire installation from the public road network unless a route begins or ends within the installation. All roads within an installation will be of type appropriate for that road (dirt road, street, primary street, minor highway, major highway, freeway). The private road segments and surrounding roads should be locked with a high enough level lock to prevent novice editors from deleting or changing this control.
Nested private installations (wholly within another private installation) will likewise be isolated in the same manner or Preferred Treatment from the larger installation.
Benefit of this alternate treatment is that it is structurally simpler than the preferred treatment.
Detriment of this treatment is that it does not allow any road type to be used for the exiting protective one-way segments in the preferred treatment.
6. Larger Installation: Other Notes / Details
A. Public Roads Across Private Installations
Many larger military bases and perhaps other private installations sometimes have long right-of-way permissions for a publicly accessible road, often times this is a highway or primary street. (e.g., US-70 through White Sands Missile Range.) These highways run across the private installation with no restriction to traffic but provide no access to the installation itself. Editors should not create any access restrictions in these regions. Because these roads are often times fenced off on both sides from the private installation, editors should be on the look out for private installation roads inappropriately connected to the public road. These are usually locked off by gates most of the time, in which case the road can be disconnected or have a gap. Some of these are entry/exit gates with treatments noted above.
B. Preventing Other Editors from Making Mistakes
One method of preventing mistakes from novice editors has already been discussed, locking of the private road segments and surrounding segments. There is another approach that may be valuable.
Larger private installations, such as a military base, that are embedded in a city often have legacy roads that used to connect to the public road network. From the Waze Editor aerial images, it can look like these roads actually connect to the private installation, when upon closer inspection (if possible) there is really a fence that permanently blocks the road. There may also be a fence gate that is closed most of the time, only opened when guards are present. In both these situations, there should be no road connection, or a gap in the road network within the Waze Editor.
Novice editors or experienced editors that are not paying attention, may accidentally connect these roads when they should not be connected. One could lock these segments. One may also put a signpost only available to editors noting this issue. Until Waze implements signposts for editors, a small strip of a two-way Railroad can be placed across the gap in the road network with the word "FENCE" as the name of that Railroad segment. This should alert and remind editors that the roads should not be connected. These short Railroad segments are not visible in the client.