[Talk-us] highway=cycleway or highway=path

[Dion Dock]

Here's my opinion, and we all know what opinions are worth.  :)

I can understand why highway=path makes sense from a routing perspective.  

However, when I look at Mapnik, I want to see the way's intended use.  I'm sure there are plenty of counterexamples, but in my experience, all paths allow pedestrians, while only some allow bikes and/or horses.  This renders nicely too: bikes get one color, horses another, foot another.  So put me on Paul's side for this.

(Of course, I'm also of the opinion that highway=footway should imply surface=paved, highway=path implies surface=gravel or dirt and highway=cycleway implies surface=paved.)

That said, it's probably better to be consistent than "correct".  I've grown tired of trying to convince other contributors of the proper types.  Now I just sit back and watch the trails in Forest Park change tags every week.  ;)

-Dion

> Message: 7
> Date: Tue, 21 Jun 2011 16:10:39 -0700
> From: PJ Houser <stephanie.jean.houser at gmail.com>
> To: talk-us at openstreetmap.org
> Cc: osm-pdx at googlegroups.com, Paul Johnson <baloo at ursamundi.org>
> Subject: Re: [Talk-us] highway=cycleway or highway=path
> Message-ID: <BANLkTi=wKtQOdm2syFfEL-yZnEsus6NaPA at mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
> 
> Well, I have a conundrum here in Portland, Oregon. The 4 TriMet mappers here
> in Portland would prefer to tag all multi-use paths as paths, with
> bicycle=designated, particularly because we are attempting to make the
> Portland area routable. OpenTripPlanner, the multi-modal routing software
> we'll be using, routes for walking, bicycling, cars, and transit, so I'm
> hoping to let paths be paths because that implies bicycle AND pedestrian are
> legally allowed equal access. However, a fellow user, Paul Johnson, favors
> highway=cycleway for designated multi-use paths. I am cc-ing him for his
> input, as there is probably a good reason he prefers cycleways. I am also
> cc-ing the OSM-PDX google group for their input.
> 
> Terms:
> Cycleway: http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:highway%3Dcycleway "The
> highway=cycleway indicates that the used way is mainly or exclusively for
> bicycles. Some consider it better to use highway=path if use is not
> restricted to cyclists."
> Path: http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:highway%3Dpath "This tag is
> used for paths for which all and any of highgway=footway, highway=cycleway,
> and highway=bridleway would be inappropriate or inadequate (or simply not
> sufficient), but which are nonetheless usable for travel or navigation. They
> might be not intended for any particular use, or intended for several
> different uses. Intended uses can be indicated with the access=designated
> keys. It is also used for hiking trails."
> 
> Some examples of multi-use paths tagged as highway=cycleway:
> Eastbank Esplanade
> http://www.portlandonline.com/parks/finder/index.cfm?PropertyID=105&action=ViewPark
> Morrison Bridge Multi-use Path
> http://bikeportland.org/2011/06/10/morrison-bridge-path-to-close-for-construction-project-54559
> Hawthorne Bridge, with both pedestrian and bicycle markings
> http://bikeportland.org/2005/11/21/hawthorne-bridge-gets-new-markings-673.
> 
> Traffic stats:
> In 2008, the breakdown for peak-hour (4-6 pm) usage of these trails shows
> that cyclists usually dominate, but pedestrians make up from 15% to 50% of
> the traffic.
> http://www.portlandonline.com/transportation/index.cfm?c=34778&a=292746
> 
> 
> --
> PJ Houser
> Trimet
> GIS intern
> username: PJ Houser