OSM Bike Ottawa Tagging Guide

Table of Contents

• Lanes
• Smoothness
• Signs
• Lane Configuration
• Flooding
• Parking
• Plowing
• Filtered Permeability and Pinch-Points
• Force Dismounts
• Intersections and other Road Crossings
• Other tags for ways not shown
• Points of Interest (Nodes)

Lanes

Feature	Description	OSM Schema	Photos
Paved Multi-Use Path (MUP)	Typically 3m wide, may be wider. Intended for mixed bike and foot traffic.	highway=cycleway foot=yes segregated=no smoothness=excellent surface=asphalt
Twinned Path	Typically >4.5 m wide. Intended for separated bike and foot traffic	highway=path surface=asphalt segregated=yes
Walkway	Typically <3m wide. May not have curb cuts. Intended primarily for foot traffic, though bikes are not prohibited	highway=footway
Unpaved Multi-Use Path (MUP)	Typically 3m wide. Intended for mixed bike and foot traffic. Often a stonedust surface, but sometimes dirt.	highway=path surface=fine_gravel bicycle=yes
One way protected lanes	Also known as cycletracks. Separated from the roadway, pedestrians not permitted.	highway=cycleway oneway=yes
Bi-directional protected cycletrack	Separate way for the cycletrack.	highway=cycleway oneway=no
Buffered bike lane	The bike lane and roadway share a continuous surface, but are separated by treatments that may include; - jersey barriers - planters - flex stakes - double paint line	cycleway=lane buffer=yes
Painted bike lane, on a divided road	A single line of paint delineates the bike lane. Bike symbol may be painted in the lane. The lane is reserved for bikes by posted signage.	cycleway:right=lane
Painted bike lane, on an undivided road	A single line of paint delineates the bike lane. Bike symbol may be painted in the lane. The lane is reserved for bikes by posted signage.	cycleway=lane
Shoulder, not signed as a bike lane	A single line of paint delineates the shoulder. No signage or bike symbols present. Parking on the shoulder is typically permitted.	shoulder:left/right/both shoulder:surface=yes/no
Contraflow lane	On one-way streets, a yellow line allows two-way bike traffic.	cycleway=opposite_lane
Advisory bike lane	Dashed lines delineate bike lanes on each side of the street. The remaining roadway is too narrow for two-way motor traffic. Motorists may enter the bike lanes when encountering an oncoming vehicle, but must give priority to cyclists.
Shared bus/bike lane	Cyclists will often have these lanes to themselves, but sometimes will need to navigate amidst buses. Designated by signage.	cycleway=share_busway
Shared sidewalk (signed)	A standard sidewalk, sharing designated by signage. Surface is often concrete, rather than asphalt.
Dooring zone	Unique in Ottawa. Painted warning that cyclists should avoid riding close to parked vehicles.
Super sharrows	Green backgound for enhanced visibility. Indicates lane position cyclists should use on roads where no cycling infrastructure is present.	sharrows=left/right/both
Sharrows	Bike symbol indicates lane position cyclists should use on roads where no cycling infrastructure is present. Require frequent re-painting and may be very faded; it's still of interest to know which roads are intended to have sharrows.	sharrows=left/right/both
Traffic-calming parking lane	Resembles a bike lane or paved shoulder, but is typically narrow and includes a curb. Intended to visually narrow the road and calm traffic speeds. Not specifically intended for cycling, but may be functional. Parking is typically permitted.
Service strip	Asphalt strip, resembles a cycletrack, but is typically narrow and in poor condition, with no intersection treatments, and may include utility poles. Intended as a low-maintenance surface for snow storage. Also provide width and smoothness tags.	shoulder=service_strip width=* smoothness=*
Desire line	Well-worn path in a direct line between popular destinations. Also known as a goat path.	highway=path path=desire
Singletrack	Recreational in purpose, may be meandering or direct. Most often maintained by users. Often includes technically challenging sections, but some sections may be appropriate for transportation
Track road	Also known as doubletrack. Typically direct, but surfaces are often too rough for comfortable cycling. Motor vehicles such as ATVs are often permitted, but track roads are typically not used by conventional cars. May not be maintained.
Boardwalk	May be recreational in purpose, but some sections are suitable for transportation	highway=path bridge=boardwalk surface=wood

Smoothness

Feature	Description	OSM Schema	Photos
Smoothness	Read more on the wiki. Always a subjective call. Here are some more cycling-specific interpretations of the keys.	smoothness=*
Excellent	Fresh flawless pavement	smoothness=excellent
Good	Decent on skinny tires, a few cracks and bumps Flawless stone dust	smoothness=good
Intermediate	A bike with sturdy tires and wheels would be preferred by most. - Bumpy but not hazardous pavement. - Stonedust with some minor washouts. - Well-packed featureless dirt.	smoothness=intermediate
Bad	Pavement with jarring bumps, alligatoring, or large cracks. Coarse gravel or stonedust with washouts that require alertness. Dirt trail with small stones or some small roots.	smoothness=bad
Very_bad	A mountain bike, perhaps with front suspension, is a more comfortable choice here. Pavement with hazardous bumps and cracks large enough to swallow skinny wheels. This is the worst pavement condition that Ottawa is willing to just live with. - Stonedust with hazardous washouts. - Rocky surface, such as an ATV trail. - Dirt trail where stones or roots require attention.	smoothness=very_bad
Horrible	Dangerously broken pavement that should be fixed immediately; this is not a tag that will often apply to paved surfaces. - Trails with large stones or roots that may require dismounting or suspension	smoothness=horrible
Very Horrible	Rough-edged stones, many exposed roots, suitable only for fatbikes or full suspension	smoothness=very_horrible
Impassible	Almost nobody would be able to ride this	smoothness=impassible

Signs

Feature	Description	OSM Schema	Photos
Share the road sign	Useful to tag as an advocacy target	traffic_sign=*
Single file sign	Useful to tag as an advocacy target	traffic_sign=*
Bike route sign	May be useful as way-finding if they come with a bike route number, but many are just generic green signs	traffic_sign=*
Walk your Bike	A permissive sign that indicates you may walk your bike. This sign alone does not make dismounting mandatory. Tagging them will be useful for indicating areas where there is insufficient space to share with pedestrians or where legal road crossing facilities have not been provided.	traffic_sign=*

Lane Configuration

Feature	Description	OSM Schema	Photos
Two Lanes	Most residential streets.	lanes=2
Multiple Lanes	Includes turning lanes	lanes=5
Width	Most designated MUPs have a width of 3m, though some are wider. Walkways are typically 2m	width=*
Speed limit	Only show if the speed is posted different than 50.	maxspeed=40

Flooding

Feature	Description	OSM Schema	Photos
Flood Prone	Use flood_prone=yes If the flooding is a predictable annual event, you may wish to add conditional access restrictions to indicate times of the year when the way should be avoided.	access:conditional=no @ May 1-15

Parking

It's possible to get into deep detail on street parking; we are mainly concerned with whether it is present, or saying definitively that it is absent.

Feature	Description	OSM Schema	Photos
Left	Parking, left side	parking:lane:left=yes
Right	Parking, right side	parking:lane:right=yes
Both	Parking, both side	parking:lane=yes
No Parking	No Parking	parking:lane=no_parking
No Stopping	No Stopping	parking:lane=no_stopping

Plowing

Feature	Description	OSM Schema	Photos
Maintained	If maintained, seasonal=no	seasonal=no
Not maintained	If not plowed, seasonal=yes and add a conditional restriction of access:conditional=no @ Dec-Mar to indicate the period when the way is typically unavailable	seasonal=yes access:conditional=no
Poorly maintained	If poorly plowed, add a conditional restriction of smoothness:conditional=bad @ Dec-Mar	smoothness:conditional=bad

Filtered Permeability and Pinch-Points

Feature	Description	OSM Schema	Photos
Chicane without channel
Chicane with channel
P-Gate		barrier=cycle_barrier bicycle=yes motor_vehicle=no
Block/Boulder/Planter		barrier=block bicycle=yes motor_vehicle=no
Bollard		barrier=bollard bicycle=yes motor_vehicle=no
Split-path entrance

Force Dismounts

Feature	Description	OSM Schema	Photos
Narrow Gate	Very narrow gate (<90 cm gap)	barrier=cycle_barrier bicycle=yes/dismount maxwidth=0.5
Swing Gate	Swing gate, can be opened and closed.	barrier=swing_gate bicycle=yes/dismount
Stairs with no trough		highway=steps ramp=no bicycle=dismount
Stairs with trough		highway=steps ramp=yes ramp:bicycle=yes bicycle=dismount
Lock crossing		bridge=yes surface=wood bicycle=dismount
Curb cut needed		bicycle=dismount

Intersections and other Road Crossings

Feature	Description	OSM Schema	Photos
All-way stop
Two-way stop
Pedestrian Crossover	Also known as PXOs. These are mid-block crossings, designated by a variety of different signage treatments. They are not crosswalks, which are located at intersections. Cyclists may use PXOs, but are required by law to walk their bike.
Yield
Traffic circle, no bypass
Traffic circle with bypass
Bicycle box	Also known as an advanced stop line (ASL). ASL nodes are located before the actual junction node, and are always connected to their junctions by the Way they're on.	cycleway=asl
Jug handle	These are places for the cyclists to pull off to the right, out of the stream of traffic, and await an opportunity to cross the road.	cycleway=asl
Cyclist-only left turn lane
Cycleway crosses highway

Other tags for ways not shown

Feature	Description	OSM Schema	Photos
Truck route		hgv=yes
Trucks prohibited		hgv=no
Bridge		bridge=yes
Tunnel		tunnel=yes
Lighting		lit=yes
Relation		operator=NCC/City of Ottawa/Ville de Gatineau
Official name		name=*

Points of Interest (Nodes)

Feature	Description	OSM Schema	Photos
Bicycle Parking		amenity=bicycle_parking capacity=N
Drinking Water		amenity=drinking_water
Bench		amenity=bench
Waste Basket		amenity=waste_basket
Waste Basket		amenity=waste_basket
Bicycle Repair Station		amenity=bicycle_repair_station
Bicycle Share Station
Bicycle Counter		man_made=monitoring_station monitoring:bicycle=yes