[Tagging] Wharf

[Malcolm Herring]

On 16/02/2016 16:48, Jean-Marc Liotier wrote:
> So is a mole a special sort of pier ? Then definition of "pier" in
> http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:man_made%3Dpier is wrong, as it
> is not always "a raised walkway over water supported by pillars".

That definition of a pier is correct. Water flows under a pier but not a 
mole. So the outline of the projecting area of a mole is part of the 
coastline (or riverbank) whereas a pier is not. I use the tag 
"man_made=mole". Tags with "pier" in either key or value are 
inappropriate for a mole.

Also, to complicate the issue, there is also an "open-faced wharf" as 
opposed to a "solid-faced wharf" (the usual case). An open faced wharf 
is a pier-like structure (i.e. a deck on piles over the water) but 
alongside the shore rather projecting from it.