[Tagging] We should stop using hyphens to denote address ranges

[Mateusz Konieczny]

Aug 18, 2020, 07:09 by andrew.harvey4 at gmail.com:

> > Data consumers see these hyphenated house numbers as one address, as well.
>
> Is that a problem? An address range can be considered a single address.
>
> > Create an address node for each housenumber and place each node somewhere on the building outline (or inside the building)
>
> I don't think that's a good idea, we should try to accurately map what's on the ground, when the street address is signposted as a range like "1-3" we should capture that as a single address "1-3" and not multiple addresses unless it's signed that way on the ground.
>
It depends on what is actually on the ground, we are mapping addresses with addr:housenumber.

Single object using 1-3 range? OK, 1-3 is correct and other versions would be incorrect.

Single 1-3 signpost with three entrances? Then mapping each as a separate node with
addr:housenumber=1, addr:housenumber=2, addr:housenumber=3 is preferable.

Single entrance? Depends on a case, if there is later a clear split then three nodes are better
than one range.

Signposts are not sole address source, asking people - especially people living there -
is also perfectly acceptable on the ground survey method.

>
> > If house numbers are associated with individual entrances, tag those numbers to entrance=* nodes.
>
> Doesn't work when the whole site and single main entrance have the address range.
>
And in such case range may be OK or even preferable.

> > Separate the numbers by commas (e.g., 11,13,15) or semicolon (e.g., 11;13;15).
>
why commas?

> Again I feel that's skewing what's actually represented on the ground, which is a single address which is a range and not multiple addresses.
>
We are using addr:* to map addresses, not signposts. And in this specific case you are 
anyway unable to specify range.

> > Specify the range (e.g. 10-95). Note that there is a risk of ambiguity between two meanings:
> > When such a range is officially used for the entire house, this is the preferred method. In this case 10-95 is simply a label like any other. In this and other cases, house numbers officially contain a dash and are not meant to be treated as special.
> > When such a range is meant to be interpreted as a list of addresses, use addr:interpolation=* (described below) to emphasise this. Some mappers will add a short "virtual" way which allows them to put addresses 10 and 95 on separate nodes as normal. Some mappers will specify the range 10-95 on a single object, where the addition of the addr:interpolation=* tag disambiguates it from the "simply a label" meaning, specifying that it is indeed to be treated as a range. Both approaches are used in practice and there is little consensus.
> > Note that in some cases building or building complex has single address such as 3-5 that only looks like a housenumber range. As usual, do not convert such data blindly, without a verification.
> I think this is the best option, since it depends exactly what's happening on the ground.
>
> I think the only reasonable alternative is to have something like addr:housenumber:start=1 + addr:housenumber:end=3. Which is clearer that this is a range and allows data consumers to understand it better.
>
> On Tue, 18 Aug 2020 at 13:34, Paul White <> pjwhite1010 at gmail.com> > wrote:
>
>> Hello,
>>
>> I wanted to raise a concern about tagging house numbers on a building using a hyphen to denote the address range (e.g 33-55 Main Street). This is a bad idea because some areas in the United States and possibly elsewhere use hyphenated street numbers for individual dwellings.[1] Data consumers see these hyphenated house numbers as one address, as well. Other methods documented >> here <https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Addresses#Buildings_with_multiple_house_numbers>>>  work better, in my opinion.
>>
>> I hope to get some input on this issue and the best path forward.
>>
>> Best, Paul
>>
>> [1]
>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queens#Streets
>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_Lawn%2C_New_Jersey#Grid-based_address_system
>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Address#United_States
>>
>>
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>>  Tagging mailing list
>>  >> Tagging at openstreetmap.org
>>  >> https://lists.openstreetmap.org/listinfo/tagging
>>

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