[OSM-talk] Proposed bulk removal of service=driveway2

[Minh Nguyen]

Should the nearly 10,000 occurrences of the service=driveway2 tag be 
(re)removed in a bulk edit?

Background
----------

For several years, the tag service=driveway2 occasionally appeared in 
the database due to a usability issue in iD: users would type "driveway" 
into the Service Road preset's Type field but forget to click outside 
the field before pressing <2> to draw a new line.

In 2020, a mapper coined a new definition for service=driveway. In the 
last two years, they've systematically applied it to about 10,000 ways 
in Japan and Singapore. [1] They documented the tag on the wiki as a 
non-regional tag, though the page has since seen some back-and-forth 
with other mappers (including myself) who disagree with it. [2] Based on 
the tag's prevalence, JOSM's developers are considering how to handle 
the tag. [3]

As far as I know, the proponent of this tag has not solicited feedback 
on this tag through the wiki's feature proposal process, any OSM mailing 
list or forum, or the customary communication channels used by the 
affected local communities. However, the tag has been discussed in 
several venues on- and off-wiki. I think it's fair to say the consensus 
was clearly against it in these discussions. [4][5][6] Previous 
discussions on the tagging list have affirmed that service=* should be 
omitted from the affected ways. [7]

Several days ago, there was an attempt to remove occurrences of this tag 
all at once. However, it was reverted upon the request of the DWG, which 
wanted a prior discussion about the mechanical edit. [8] Since the 
proponent of the tag has not taken the step of consulting the community, 
despite multiple requests, I am doing so on their behalf.

Rationale
---------

I believe a bulk tag deletion is justified in this case. It has been 
noted that some data consumers treat highway=service without service=* 
differently than highway=service with service=*. The prevalence of this 
tag also creates confusion among mappers by appearing in taginfo-powered 
suggestion lists alongside service=driveway. As I understand it, the tag 
in its current usage is tantamount to service=yes, making a bare 
highway=service the only straightforward replacement.

Allowing service=driveway2 to stand in the database creates a precedent 
that a single mapper can unilaterally introduce a tag that conflicts 
with a longstanding tagging convention (highway=service without 
service=*) and force the community to accept it as a de facto tagging 
convention, despite strong misgivings against it, without any attempt to 
establish consensus. "Any tags you like" is not an absolute right for 
someone with ample leisure time to cause disruption in the project.

Proposal
--------

Remove every occurrence of the service=driveway2 tag, leaving the ways 
themselves intact. The proposed change can be accomplished by reverting 
changeset 125711868 and editing any other service=driveway2 occurrences 
that have arisen in the meantime.

I'll crosspost this discussion to the Asian and Japanese communication 
channels for comment. For the avoidance of doubt, I am posting this 
message in an individual capacity, not as OSMUS board member or wiki 
administrator.

[1] https://overpass-turbo.eu/s/1lAb
[2] https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:service%3Ddriveway2
[3] https://josm.openstreetmap.de/ticket/21396
[4] 
<https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Talk:Tag:service%3Ddriveway#Removal_on_restrictions_on_service=driveway_tagging>
[5] https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Talk:Tag:service%3Ddriveway2
[6] 
<https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Special:PermanentLink/2385195#External_discussions>
[7] https://lists.openstreetmap.org/pipermail/tagging/2016-March/028982.html
[8] https://www.openstreetmap.org/changeset/125373826

-- 
minh at nguyen.cincinnati.oh.us