[Imports] [Talk-us] Proposing import of sidewalk data Seattle, WA, USA

[Pavel Machek]

Hi!

> >We are proposing to import open municipal sidewalk data from the city of
> >Seattle as described in this proposal:
> >http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Seattle,_Washington/Sidewalk_Import.
> >
> >Imports will be tagged according to the sidewalk schema that we propose
> >here:
> >http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Proposed_features/sidewalk_schema. The
> >schema is a proposal for standardization of conventions, rather than
> >changing or adding tags, and it is particularly concerned with features of
> >sidewalks that may aid or impede travel for people with limited mobility.
> 
> From reading that a number of potential issues occur to me - one of which is
> that it does appear to be a change to the way that crossings are mapped.
> Your page says "recommend crossings be mapped as ways".
> http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:highway%3Dcrossing currently suggests
> nodes only (and there are people out there avidly changing crossings mapped
> as ways to crossings mapped as nodes). Whilst this may just be a
> clarification issue, at the very least you'd want to liaise with them so
> that you get their input.  Perhaps some examples (on the dev server) would
> help?
> 
> Whilst I can understand why you'd want to map e.g. drop kerbs for wheelchair
> use, I think you need to remember that most of the world is not like
> Seattle.  In most places in the world jaywalking isn't even a concept and
> you can cross a road anywhere that you like.  How are you going to model
> this?

Dunno. Most of the Europe has crossings. in Czech republic, you are
supposed to use them when they are "near". New crossings are often
(always?) designed for wheelchairs. 

> Also on http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Proposed_features/sidewalk_schema
> you've said " According to Routing/online_routers, routing options for
> pedestrians, wheelchair users, and blind persons significantly more limited
> than other routing use cases.".  This simply isn't the case for pedestrians
> - I'm not aware of a mainstream handheld router using OSM data that
> _doesn't_ support pedestrian routing.  My experience is that handheld
> routers often get confused when sidewalks are mapped separately, not because
> it's inherantly a bad idea, but because people tend to make a mess of it.
> Mapping sidewalks as a separate way is (in both volume and connection terms)
> harder than mapping as left/right/both; there's more for mappers, especially
> new mappers, to get wrong.

Well.. Mapping sideways as left/right/both only looks easy on surface.

Right now I'm on highway=primary, surface=asphalt. sidewalk on the
right is just next to road, surface=stones, sidewalk on the left is
separated by about .5 m of grass from road, surface=stones. What exact
attributes would you use to map it?

									Pavel

-- 
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