[Tagging] "new" highway tag for small and informal footpaths; trail

[Mike N.]

>> please no new highway, path/footway is already a very controversial tag.
>
>
> Yes, and it could become a little clearer when there is different tags
> for a 3 m wide and paved "path" and a 0.3 m wide and unpaved and
> unmaintained "path". We have x road classes and just one for ways that
> are not roads (given that footway, cycleway and bridleway are all
> synonyms of highway=path designated=foo, dedicated=foo, official=foo,
> etc.). I don't say stuff can't be expressed currently, but it would
> make the life of mappers, renderers, routers much easier if there was
> a way to put out the difference.

  I would still say that the current highway=path handles this very well. 
I've never felt constrained by this tag with the common attributes.   You 
can provide direction to renderers by adding surface=, width=, sac_scale, 
mtb:scale .   If current renderers do not interpret *scale, surface, or 
numerical width - this is a renderer problem.