[Tagging] What is the role of "role=guidepost"

[ajt1047 at gmail.com]

On 13/04/2019 09:52, Volker Schmidt wrote:
> I have only now detected this (optional?) role value in route relations.
> What's the purpose of this?
> Or put in other words: I have a node tagged with 
> "information=guidepost". What is the difference between inserting it 
> in a route relation with or without "role=guidepost"
>
Without a role you have no idea how a guidepost or route_marker relates 
to the route as a whole.  Does it tell you how to go to the next bit?  
Is it the start or the finish?  Is it something else?  Also, it's 
possible for one guidepost or route_marker to have different roles 
within different routes.

Here's one locally that I've tried to annotate with roles:

https://www.openstreetmap.org/relation/6563955

(see https://taginfo.openstreetmap.org/search?q=marker#roles for the 
usage of those tags, or lack of them).

I suspect that "role=guidepost" is someone doing the same thing, but 
only for guideposts.

Best Regards,

Andy