[Talk-GB] Power Network Open Data

Russ Garrett russ at garrett.co.uk
Sun May 23 12:44:25 UTC 2021


On Sun, 23 May 2021 at 13:14, Steve Brook via Talk-GB
<talk-gb at openstreetmap.org> wrote:
> I have not used the reference number for substations/transformers as they do not appear to match those seen on the ground.
> Do you know what their source is and if adding them to OSM is a good idea?

This is WPD's "site reference", and I think it is probably the best
ref to use, but we should probably decide if we want to use a
namespaced ref tag like "ref:GB:wpd_site". I reckon with these I've
got a decent chance of an automated (or at least semi-automated) edit,
so I wouldn't worry too much about adding them at the moment.

There's some inevitable confusion here about what actually constitutes
a substation; the terminology is a bit vague even in the industry. I
think WPD's site IDs correspond best to what would be considered a
substation in OSM.

> My observation is that the tiles are useful for finding 11kv lines and distinguishing them from low voltage distribution and phone lines.
> However I think in terms of accuracy it is better to use Bing imagery to locate poles and lines rather than rely on the WPD lines that may be a bit out in places.

Yes, I think I forgot to mention that low voltage (230/400V) lines are
not included in this dataset.

The accuracy of lines is certainly a bit off in places and I'd
recommend using aerial imagery for actual alignment. I wonder if in
some cases the lines are shown "as planned" rather than how they were
actually installed.

Cheers,

-- 
Russ Garrett
russ at garrett.co.uk



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