[OSM-talk] Fix a Forest - experimental tiles from US Forest Service data

[Richard Fairhurst]

Hi all,

I've created a set of tiles from US Forest Service road data for the 155 
US National Forests.

This is to help with TIGER fixup in these rural areas, where tracks, 
trails and entirely non-existent paths are often tagged with a bare 
"highway=residential". The US Forest Service data is greatly superior to 
the original TIGER data and has metadata on surface type/quality, but is 
unsuitable for automatic import into OSM because it would overwrite 
mappers' existing work in these areas.

You can access the tiles at:
	Potlatch 2/JOSM - http://osm.cycle.travel/forest/{zoom}/{x}/{y}.png
	iD - http://osm.cycle.travel/forest/{z}/{x}/{y}.png

and they're included in the editor-imagery-index list used by P2 and iD. 
The tiles are available up to z19. Use of Potlatch 2's new "floating 
imagery window" mode is recommended, so that you can work from both Bing 
imagery and these tiles at the same time. :)

You can also explore from the comfort of your browser:
	http://osm.cycle.travel/index.html

where there's an "Edit this area in OpenStreetMap" link at the bottom right.

The key is:
	Surface:
		yellow outline = paved
		grey outline = gravel
	Road type:
		white with black casing = paved road
		dashed grey = gravel road suitable for cars
		dashed brown = dirt road
		dotted grey = not maintained for cars
	Maintenance level:
		grey dots = 4x4 only
		green dots = usable by cars
		black dots = moderately comfortable for cars
		black frequent dots = very comfortable for cars
	Points of interest:
		car = roadside park
		flag = Forest Service station
		ski = winter recreation area
		hiker = trailhead
		campsite = campsite
		picnic site = picnic site
(There's some degree of overlap, but this is present in the original 
USFS data.)

When remapping, I would suggest the following tags as a minimum:
	highway=unclassified - paved road
	highway=unclassified, surface=unpaved/gravel/dirt - unpaved road 
suitable for cars
	highway=service - road to isolated dwelling or other building
	highway=track - unpaved track or road suitable for 4x4s
	highway=path - narrow linear clearing, too narrow for motor vehicles
	[delete entirely] - raw TIGER data with no signs of track or path in 
either imagery or Forest Service tiles

US Forest Service data is public domain so there's no need for further 
attribution when using this data, though a source= tag is always good 
practice.

Hope these are helpful, and let me know of any further suggestions.

cheers
Richard