[arctichomesteader]

I've been researching this but can't come up with a conclusive answer and I'm not sure who with the state I would even contact. There's a class 4 road in a nearby town that has a gate on it. Locked too. The town put it up I understand but there is nothing posted on it to that effect. Just a locked gate. It wasn't there last year. Is this legal? The only thing similar I can find is a pent road but in that case the gate can't be locked and it is not the town that actually puts it up generally.

[harpoonalt]

Vermont has town road maps available at the AOT website. What you'll learn is that each town can restrict access to individual roads and the maps don't tell you which ones are truly legal. You have to contact the individual towns. I mistakenly thought Something called a legal trail on the maps meant it was ok to use. Not necessarily so and you'll get different answers depending on who you talk to.
If you get definite answers, let us know. 3 phone calls in I gave up!

[arctichomesteader]

Yeah, it's on all the maps as a class 4 road. It was open last year. I've used it to access some land I hunt now and then. I just found the gate today. I know legal trails can get confusing, they can be closed to vehicles, but I was always under the impression class 4 roads can't be locked up like this. Closed during mud season perhaps but not closed like this, since they're, well, roads. So confusing...

[vter]

I'd get in contact with the Selectboard Chair or the Town Clerk of whatever town this is in and ask what is up. Maybe there were problems with people using ATVs etc that the town wanted to curtail? Or maybe the town gave up the road and sold it to a private property owner?

[harry chickpea]

I agree with contacting the town clerk. If the road is a dead end road and the landowners have agreed, then I suspect it is legal and that is that. If there is a landowner that did not agree, that would be tantamount to landlocking the property and illegal.

[arctichomesteader]

I'm waiting to hear back from the town on it. I sent an email to them. It looks to me like the ATV's have taken it over now since they can squeeze around the gate, so I don't think it's going to solve an problems if there were any.

[vter]

Am curious to hear what you find out!

[arctichomesteader]

The town clams it's gated because garbage is being dumped on properties along the road. Supposedly it will be opened during the hunting seasons. They cited this statute: 19 V.S.A. § 1110. :: § 1110 Posting of highways :: 2012 Vermont Statutes :: US Codes and Statutes :: US Law :: Justia

However that statute quite clearly says the road needs to have signs posted on it if it's being closed or restricted, so, the gate by itself appears illegal. I'm also not sure dumping on private property near the road is a legal reason to close the road. I'm not sure I want to inform them how to legally close it though so I may not say anything more to them on it. I don't think the gate will last long, ATV'ers have already cut trails around the gates wide enough for a truck to go through. So I think they made the situation worse.

[Targo]

Common [lame] solution, can't address the issue outlaw/close or ban it.

[arctichomesteader]

Yeah. A game camera or two in the problem spots would catch the dumpers, that was done in another town nearby when Irene wiped out some roads and people started dumping on them, and it worked.