I always back in - that way the door to the house is on the driver's
side :-)

Ivan

It's unusual.  In fact, it's something I only did when I was part of an on-pager
emergency crew, so what your neighbor said is what would occur to me.

So, let me ask you - ya pays now or ya pays later, right?  Either way, there's a
possibility of backing into something.. when backing in, or backing out!  So why
do you prefer to do the manuever backing in??

For one thing, you can wait in your driveway for the traffic to clear before
backing out.  If you back *in*, there's the change the guy behind you will have
to wait, or you'll need to pull over to let him past, then do the back-in
maneuver.  For another thing, backing out into the street takes a little less
care than lining up to back into most driveways, since driveways are narrower
than streets.

Y'know what - get a circular driveway!

Cheers,
Banty

Yours is a smarter and safer way to use a home driveway than the more
common method of nosing in and backing out, and for exactly the reason you
state.

This is usual in England although no rule mandates it.

No, Kevin, you're special and sensible.  SOMETIMES I'm organized
enough to back into my driveway, but not usually.  

Just unusually sensible. Chances are that you're likely to be in
slightly more of a hurry when leaving, so it makes sense to have the car
'pointing the right way'.

Also you're likely to be slightly less alert first thing in the morning
so it's a bit safer.

Graham

I don't, my wife does.  It puts more room between the cars in the
garage.

We both used to when we lived on a major street.  It was easier
because we could "block" traffic to allow us to back in, but you could
never back out.  Of course, you could turn your signal on for blocks,
decreasing your speed more and more as you approached the drive way,
and people would sit behind you in the right lane honking rather than
move over one lane and go around you.

Depending on the situation, backing in can be much better.

You know how anal-retentive some people (and in many cases, city
governments) can be about their neighborhoods. Conformity is essential --
the outside of each home should look exactly like the others.

A larger city close to me is now trying to pass a law preventing people
from keeping their tarp-covered boats parked in their front yards, claiming
it's too much of an eyesore. Usually, the only ones doing this are those
who don't have the option of storing it behind their house or in a garage.

Depends if I am carrying a load in back or not. If I am, I back in, so
tailgate is right by house door. At work, I pull through the double row of
slots so I am facing 'out' to the aisle, because parking lot is laid out
badly, and backing out into the narrow aisles is a pain. Most people do the
same- you can spot the ones that went out for lunch, because they  are nose
in, in most cases.

aem sends...

I back into my present driveway, and did at my previous place in San
Francisco as well.  In each case I had a specific reason.

My present home is on a minor through street that, half a block away,
turns into the main entrance of a regional park that draws hundreds of
visitors in summer.  The street also has bike lanes that see a lot of
use (including kids who often go the wrong way).  By backing in, I
avoid having to back out into heavy traffic if I leave during rush
hour (when this street draws substantial traffic) or on a "park day".

The San Francisco place was on a street where the houses go right up
to the property lines, and the one to the right of mine (as seen
from the street) had a wall running along the edge of my driveway all
the way to the (narrow) sidewalk - and it's a major street.  Trying to
back out of there at any time would have been suicide.  If I could not
back in, I would not have dared to use the garage at all.

In both places, I use this technique to minimize the delay to others
when I back into the driveway:
1)  Pull over so I'm "parallel parked" in the driveway opening.
2)  Wait (a reasonable time but not forever) for traffic to clear.
3)  Pull out at an angle of about 45 degrees to the curb, as if I were
attempting to start a U-turn, but stop while at least part of my back
bumper is still in the curb lane.  This usually prevents anyone from
getting behind me and thus blocking the completion of the maneuver.
4)  Check that it's clear (of pedestrians/bikes) behind me, then back
into the driveway.

Aside:  If your place has a double-wide driveway and yours is the only
car using it, a better technique is to pull forward into the driveway,
then make a back-and-fill turn within the driveway before shutting off
the car with the nose pointing out.  If I had the space for this method,
I would be using it instead.

One car, yes. I have a narrow two car garage and its easier to get the
drivers door open if it swings toward the center of the garage.

A few YEARS?

You're definitely unusual - on more than one level.

I hope you're not unusual because I've been doing it for about 24
years now at different homes I've owned.

"Going to a fire"?  What does that mean?

I back into my driveway because it is easier to pull out into traffic
then backout... it's easier to block traffic for a moment when pulling
in (if I need to.. the street is not traveled much)... also.. there is
less of a chance of something being in my driveway (ie child, bike, car,
etc) then on the road when I'm backing up... and as other posters have
said.. it's easier to get out in an emergency (I'm a network admin for
an ISP and sometimes need to leave in a hury)... why back out when you
need to go somewhere?  why not back in when you have the time..

It's probably safer to reverse in and drive out. Personally, I do it the
easy way and drive in. It makes backing out a bit tricky, especially if
there are a lot of parked cars on the street making it impossible to
see, but any cars coming usually stop or honk when they see me backing out.

Ulf

I do with the van, which even with towing mirrors and a rear-window
lens has big blind spots, for pretty much the reasons you describe.

Before backing in, I can get a good look at who or what might be in or
near the driveway (usually nothing, but as the saying goes, "assume
makes an a.s out of u and me").  If there's something I have to move,
or somebody's kid is too close for comfort, or traffic coming, I can
parallel park in the mouth of the driveway until I get a handle on  the
situation.

By contrast, backing out into a public street in such a vehicle,
especially in the morning when kids are walking or riding bikes to
school, drivers who are late for work and probably a little behind the
car are likely to come flying down the street, etc., strikes me as a
less controlled situation.

The other possibilities in the family are sedans and a small SUV that
have much better sight lines; I usually feel pretty good about nosing
in and backing out.  

Your neighborhood may vary,
--Joe

I always back in when I park -- it's much easier to pull past my
driveway, make sure the driveway is clear, then back into it, than it
is to make sure the street is clear before I start, and remains clear
while I back out onto the street.  

The driveway is a much more confined space, there's no other vehicle
traffic coming onto it, much less pedestrian traffic, and no room for
bicycles or skateboards to be going fast.  The street has
intersections, other driveways, public sidewalks, bicycles riding on
the wrong side of the road, etc.  And a motorist entering the roadway
is required to yield to all the traffic already on the roadway, so
almost any accident backing out of a driveway is going to be the
backing motorist's fault.

If I remember correctly, around 20% of all car/pedestrian accidents
are children being hit by cars backing out of driveways.  

I know in my state it's illegal to back OUT of a driveway.  It's never
enforced, but it's on the books.  I suppose it may be enforced if you
backed out and caused an accident.  Makes perfect sense depending on the
street.

I used to live on a fairly busy street and would always pull up just passed
my driveway on the edge and then back in when the traffic broke.  This was
FAR safer than trying to back out on to the busy street.

On Wed, 13 Jul 2005 16:18:24 -0400, someone wrote:

How long is your driveway?

Is it any easier to back out than in?

Most people I know, drive forward into their driveway, and then turn
around to go out forwards also.  

I back my trailer into the driveway so that I can park it tight
against a building.  The cars, I drive in and then turn around to go
out.

Reply to NG only - this e.mail address goes to a kill file.

Yes. That's the way I was taught to park. Especially at my parents'
house, backing out of their driveway is a major pain in the neck, but
backing into it is a no-brainer. I also prefer not to have to back out
into a public area where kids and other traffic may come up in my car's
blind spot.

Probably a bit unusual, but there is nothing generally wrong with it.

My wife used to back into our driveway so that the driver's side door
would be on the center of the drive.  It was narrow enough that people
getting out on one side would have to step on the lawn - she didn't
like stepping on the lawn in her work shoes (heels, etc).  Since the
drive faced south, backing in kept the sun from beating in on the
through the back window and cooking our kid's car seat.  She kept a sun
shade in the front window.  We have recently moved, and I sold my boat,
so she has room to park in the garage now.

My company has a policy telling anyone driving a company vehicle to use
what they call "planned parking."  Part of that is, when possible, to
park in such a way that backing will not be required when arriving or
leaving.  When backing cannot be avoided, we recommend that it be done
on arrival, not departure.  The idea is that when you back into a
paking space, you can usually visually clear it from the drivers seat
before parking when you arrive.  And when leaving, it is easier to see
traffic hazards you may be pulling into when going foward rather than
backing.

I back into my driveway and garage(s) exclusively.  When I'm ready to
enter the VERY BUSY street I live on, I simply look left and right and
then let out the clutch and go when clear.  If I try to back out of the
spot, it's like a roll of the dice cause I don't have a overall clear
field of observation of coming cars when I'm looking over my shoulders.

When I visit my parents, I back into their long driveway.  Same thing as
above, my field of observation via peering over the shoulder is much
more limited than looking ahead when driving the car straight out of
their driveway.  In fact, some years ago, after bringing the parents car
into the driveway via reversing it into the driveway, my parents, after
years and years of driving front-end-first into their driveway, so liked
driving straight out of the driveway cause I had made it possible by
backing their car into their driveway, that they now EXCLUSIVELY back
their car into the driveway.

When in parking lots I back into the parking spot (well except for the
angled spots which are clearly made for front-end-first parking).  No
worrying about cars approaching as I try to back out.

You must lead an exciting life.  And no doubt back into other things as
well.  Thanks for sharing...

You are unusually conscientious in looking out for kids and other
vehicles.
Lead on, sir.

W : )