Key:highway - OpenStreetMap Wiki
Key:highway
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Key:highway
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highway
Description
Used for roads and road-related facilities.
Group:
highways
Used on these
elements
Documented values:
71
Status:
approved
highway
More details at tag
info
Tools for this tag
taginfo
AD
AT
BE
BR
BY
CH
CN
CZ
DE
DK
FI
FR
GB
GR
HU
IE (N+S)
IN
IR
IT
LI
LU
JP
KP
KR
NL
NO
PL
PT
RU
ES
AR
MX
CO
BO
CL
EC
PY
PE
UY
VE
TW
UA
US
VN
overpass-turbo
QLever
Postpass via overpass-turbo
OSM Tag History
Main article:
Highways
Contents
Usage
Examples
Values
3.1
Highway
3.1.1
Roads
3.1.2
Link roads
3.1.3
Special road types
3.1.4
Paths
3.1.5
When sidewalk/crosswalk is tagged as a separate way
3.1.6
When sidewalk (or pavement) is tagged on the main roadway (see Sidewalks)
3.1.7
When cycleway is drawn as its own way (see Bicycle)
3.1.8
Cycleway tagged on the main roadway or lane (see Bicycle)
3.1.9
Busways tagged on the main roadway or lane (see Bus lanes)
3.1.10
Street parking tagged on the main roadway (see Street parking)
3.1.11
Lifecycle (see also lifecycle prefixes)
3.1.12
Attributes
3.1.13
Other highway features
Assumptions
See also
Possible tagging mistakes
Usage
Main article:
Highways
The key
highway
=*
is the main key used for identifying any kind of road, street or path. The value of the key helps indicate the importance of the highway within the road network as a whole. See the table below for an ordered list from most important (
motorway
) to least important (
service
).
See the
international highway classification equivalence
for how different countries apply these tags to their own road networks.
Note that
highway
=*
distinguishes roads by
function and importance rather by their physical characteristic
and legal classification. Usually these things are highly correlated, but OSM is not obligated to copy official road classifications.
This key is also used for features like bus stops, service areas, pedestrian crossings and other highway related things (see below).
Note that
while it can be confusing
this key is also used for tagging paths, lamp posts, bus stops, not only major roads.
Examples
We have about a dozen-and-a-half examples for
urban
road tagging, with photos.
Values
See below for details of commonly used values:
Highway
Key
Value
Element
Comment
Rendering carto
Examples
Roads
This group lists the 7 main tags for the road network, from most to least functionally important for motor vehicle traffic.
highway
motorway
A restricted access major divided highway, normally with 2 or more running lanes plus emergency hard shoulder. Equivalent to the Freeway, Autobahn, etc..
highway
trunk
The most important roads in a country's system that aren't motorways. (Need not necessarily be a divided highway.)
Cat and Fiddle Road, England
highway
primary
The next most important roads in a country's system. (Often link larger towns.)
Hunsrückhöhenstraße, Kappel, Germany
Tanami Road, Australia
highway
secondary
The next most important roads in a country's system. (Often link towns.)
L134, Meyenburg, Schwanewede, Germany
Vatnsnesvegur, Iceland
highway
tertiary
The next most important roads in a country's system. (Often link smaller towns and villages)
Bergedorfer Straße, Worpswede, Germany
Canol Road, Yukon, Canada
highway
unclassified
The least important through roads in a country's system – i.e. minor roads of a lower classification than tertiary, but which serve a purpose other than access to properties. (Often link villages and hamlets.)
The word 'unclassified' is a historical artefact of the UK road system and does
not
mean that the classification is unknown; you can use
highway
road
for that.
Sentiero 00, Cantagallo, Tuscany, Italy
Kuskealleen, Vordingborg, Denmark
highway
residential
Roads which serve as an access to housing, without function of connecting settlements. Often lined with housing.
Main Street, Elko, Nevada, USA
Link roads
highway
motorway_link
The link roads (sliproads/ramps) leading to/from a motorway from/to a motorway or lower class highway. Normally with the same motorway restrictions.
A5 exit link to A672, Darmstadt, Germany
highway
trunk_link
The link roads (sliproads/ramps) leading to/from a trunk road from/to a trunk road or lower class highway.
A7 / OAL23 interchange, Nesselwang, Germany
highway
primary_link
The link roads (sliproads/ramps) leading to/from a primary road from/to a primary road or lower class highway.
B20 exit and entrance to Brunn, Fridolfing, Germany
highway
secondary_link
The link roads (sliproads/ramps) leading to/from a secondary road from/to a secondary road or lower class highway.
highway
tertiary_link
The link roads (sliproads/ramps) leading to/from a tertiary road from/to a tertiary road or lower class highway.
Special road types
highway
living_street
For
living streets
, which are residential streets where pedestrians have legal priority over cars, speeds are kept very low.
beginning of a living street with a paving stones surface and some trees and cars parking at the sides
highway
service
For access roads to, or within an industrial estate, camp site, business park, car park, alleys, etc. Can be used in conjunction with
service
=*
to indicate the type of usage and with
access
=*
to indicate who can use it and in what circumstances.
highway
pedestrian
For roads used mainly/exclusively for pedestrians in shopping and some residential areas which may allow access by motorised vehicles only for very limited periods of the day. To create a 'square' or 'plaza' create a closed way and tag as pedestrian and also with
area
yes
highway
track
Roads for mostly
agricultural or forestry uses
. To describe the quality of a track, see
tracktype
=*
. Note: Although
track
s are often rough with unpaved surfaces, this tag is not describing the quality of a road but its use. Consequently, if you want to tag a general use road, use one of the
general
highway
values
instead of
track
highway
bus_guideway
A busway where the vehicle guided by the way (though not a railway) and is not suitable for other traffic. Please note: this is not a normal bus lane, use
access
no
psv
yes
instead! If the buses are not guided, consider
highway
busway
highway
escape
For runaway truck ramps, runaway truck lanes, emergency escape ramps, or truck arrester beds. It enables vehicles with braking failure to safely stop.
highway
raceway
A course or track for (motor) racing
highway
road
A road/way/street/motorway/etc. of
unknown
type. It can stand for anything ranging from a footpath to a motorway. This tag should only be used temporarily until the road/way/etc. has been properly surveyed. If you
do
know the road type, do
not
use this value, instead use one of the more specific
highway
=*
values.
highway
busway
A dedicated roadway for bus rapid transit systems
grade-seperated section of busway outside of station
Paths
highway
footway
For designated footpaths; i.e., mainly/exclusively for pedestrians. This includes walking tracks and gravel paths. If bicycles are allowed as well, you can indicate this by adding a
bicycle
yes
tag. Should not be used for paths where the primary or intended usage is unknown. Use
highway
pedestrian
for pedestrianised roads in shopping or residential areas and
highway
track
if it is usable by agricultural or similar vehicles. For ramps (sloped paths without steps), combine this tag with
incline
=*
highway
bridleway
For horse riders. Pedestrians are usually also permitted, cyclists may be permitted depending on local rules/laws. Motor vehicles are forbidden.
highway
steps
For flights of steps (stairs) on footways. Use with
step_count
=*
to indicate the number of steps
highway
corridor
For a hallway inside of a building.
highway
path
A non-specific path. Use
highway
footway
for paths mainly for walkers,
highway
cycleway
for one also usable by cyclists,
highway
bridleway
for ones available to horse riders as well as walkers and
highway
track
for ones which is passable by agriculture or similar vehicles.
highway
via_ferrata
A via ferrata is a route equipped with fixed cables, stemples, ladders, and bridges in order to increase ease and security for climbers. These via ferrata require equipment : climbing harness, shock absorber and two short lengths of rope, but do not require a long rope as for climbing.
When sidewalk/crosswalk is tagged as a separate way
footway
sidewalk
Sidewalk that runs typically along residential road. Use in combination with
highway
footway
or
highway
path
footway
crossing
Crosswalk that connects two sidewalks on the opposite side of the road. Often recognized by painted markings on the road, road sign or traffic lights. Use in combination with
highway
footway
or
highway
path
. Useful information is presence of
tactile_paving
wheelchair
suitability and
kerb
represented as a node on the crosswalk way.
footway
traffic_island
The way between two crossings, safespot for pedestrians, has micromapping characteristics as a detailed alternative to
=*
. Use in combination with
highway
footway
or
highway
path
When sidewalk (or pavement) is tagged on the main roadway (see
Sidewalks
sidewalk
both | left | right | no
Specifies that the highways has sidewalks on both sides, on one side or no sidewalk at all
When cycleway is drawn as its own way (see
Bicycle
highway
cycleway
For designated cycleways. Add
foot
=*
, though it may be avoided if
default-access-restrictions
do apply.
Separated cycleway with traffic sign
Cycleway tagged on the main roadway or lane (see
Bicycle
cycleway
lane
A lane is a route that lies within the roadway
cycleway
opposite
Deprecated variant for ways with
oneway
yes
where it is legally permitted to cycle in both directions. Replaced by
oneway
bicycle
no
cycleway
opposite_lane
Deprecated variant for ways with
oneway
yes
that have a cycling lane going the opposite direction of normal traffic flow (a "contraflow" lane). Replaced by
oneway
bicycle
no
cycleway:left
lane
cycleway:right
lane
cycleway:left:oneway
-1
cycleway:right:oneway
-1
cycleway
track
A track provides a route that is separated from traffic. In the United States, this term is often used to refer to bike lanes that are separated from lanes for cars by pavement buffers, bollards, parking lanes, and curbs.
Note
that a cycle track may alternatively be drawn as a separate way next to the road which is tagged as
highway
cycleway
cycleway
opposite_track
Deprecated variant for ways with
oneway
yes
that have a cycling track going the opposite direction of normal traffic flow. Replaced by
oneway
bicycle
no
cycleway:left
track
cycleway:right
track
cycleway:left:oneway
-1
cycleway:right:oneway
-1
cycleway
share_busway
There is a bus lane that cyclists are permitted to use.
cycleway
opposite_share_busway
Deprecated variant for ways with
oneway
yes
that have a bus lane that cyclists are also permitted to use, and which go in the opposite direction to normal traffic flow (a "contraflow" bus lane). Replaced by
oneway
bicycle
no
cycleway:left
share_busway
cycleway:right
share_busway
cycleway:left:oneway
-1
cycleway:right:oneway
-1
cycleway
shared_lane
Cyclists share a lane with motor vehicles, there are markings reminding about this. In some places these markings are known as "sharrows" ('sharing arrows') and this is the tag to use for those.
Busways tagged on the main roadway or lane (see
Bus lanes
busway
lane
Deprecated variant to tag bus lanes. Replaced by bus/psv lane tagging
lanes:bus
=*
lanes:psv
=*
) /
bus:lanes
=*
psv:lanes
=*
busway
opposite
Deprecated variant for ways with
oneway
yes
where buses are legally permitted to travel in both directions. Replaced by
oneway:bus
no
busway
opposite_lane
Deprecated variant for ways with
oneway
yes
that have a bus lane which go in the opposite direction to normal traffic flow (a "contraflow" bus lane). Replaced by
oneway:bus
no
and
lanes:bus
=*
lanes:psv
=*
) /
bus:lanes
=*
psv:lanes
=*
Street parking tagged on the main roadway (see
Street parking
parking
:left / :right / :both
(hereafter:
parking:
side
lane | street_side | on_kerb | half_on_kerb | shoulder | no | separate | yes
Primary key to record parking along the street. Describes the parking position of parked vehicles in the street.
parking:
side
orientation
=*
parallel | diagonal | perpendicular
To specify the orientation of parked vehicles if there is street parking.
Lifecycle (see also
lifecycle prefixes
highway
proposed
For planned roads, use with
proposed
=*
and a value of the proposed highway value.
highway
construction
For roads under construction. Use
construction
=*
to hold the value for the completed road.
different colours
Attributes
abutters
commercial | industrial | mixed | residential | retail etc.
See
Key:abutters
for more details.
bicycle_road
yes
A bicycle road is a road designated for bicycles. If residential streets get the status of bicycle roads, normally, by special signs, motor traffic is admitted with limited speed, often only for residents.
bus_bay
both | left | right
A bus bay outside the main carriageway for boarding/alighting
change
yes | no | not_right | not_left | only_right | only_left
Specify the allowed/forbidden lane changes
destination
Destination when following a linear feature
embankment
yes | dyke
A dyke or a raised bank to carry a road, railway, or canal across a low-lying or wet area.
embedded_rails
yes |
A highway on which non-railway traffic is also allowed has railway tracks embedded in it but the rails are mapped as separate ways.
ford
yes
The road crosses through stream or river, vehicles must enter any water.
frontage_road
yes
A frontage road.
ice_road
yes
A highway is laid upon frozen water basin, definitely doesn't exist in summer.
incline
Number % | ° | up | down
Incline steepness as percents ("5%") or degrees ("20°"). Positive/negative values indicate movement upward/downwards in the direction of the way.
junction
roundabout
This automatically implies
oneway
yes
, the oneway direction is defined by the sequential ordering of nodes within the Way. This applies on a way, tagged with
highway
=*
already.
lanes
The number of traffic lanes for general purpose traffic, also for buses and other specific classes of vehicle.
lane_markings
yes | no
Specifies if a highway has painted markings to indicate the position of the lanes.
lit
yes | no
Street lighting
maxspeed
Specifies the maximum legal speed limit on a road, railway or waterway.
motorroad
yes | no
The motorroad tag is used to describe highways that have motorway-like access restrictions but that are not a motorway.
mountain_pass
yes
The highest point of a mountain pass.
mtb:scale
0-6
Applies to
highway
path
and
highway
track
. A classification scheme for mtb trails (few inclination and downhill).
mtb:scale
:uphill
0-5
A classification scheme for mtb trails for going uphill if there is significant inclination.
mtb:scale
:imba
0-4
The IMBA Trail Difficulty Rating System shall be used for bikeparks. It is adapted to mtb trails with artificial obstacles.
mtb:description
Text
Applies to
highway
path
and
highway
track
. A key to input variable infos related to mtbiking on a way with human words
oneway
yes | no | reversible
Oneway streets are streets where you are only allowed to drive in one direction.
oneway:bicycle
yes | no |
Used on ways with
oneway
yes
where it is legally permitted to cycle in both directions.
overtaking
yes | no | caution | both | forward | backward
Specifying sections of roads where overtaking is legally forbidden. Use
overtaking
forward
yes/no/caution
and
overtaking
backward
yes/no/caution
when it depends on driving direction.
parking:lane
parallel | diagonal | perpendicular | marked | no_parking | no_stopping | fire_lane.
Deprecated variant to map parking along streets. See section on street parking above or the
street parking
page for more details.
parking:condition
free | ticket | disc | residents | customers | private
Deprecated variant to map parking conditions along streets. See section on street parking above or the
street parking
page for more details.
passing_places
yes
A way which has frequent passing places (See also:
highway
passing_place
priority
forward | backward
Traffic priority for narrow parts of roads, e.g. narrow bridges.
priority_road
designated | yes_unposted | end
Specifying roads signposted as priority roads.
sac_scale
strolling | hiking | mountain_hiking | demanding_mountain_hiking | alpine_hiking | demanding_alpine_hiking | difficult_alpine_hiking
Applies to
highway
path
and
highway
footway
. A classification scheme for hiking trails.
service
alley
driveway
parking_aisle
etc.
See
Key:service
for more details.
shoulder
no | yes | right | both | left
Presence of shoulder in highway
side_road
yes
A side road.
smoothness
excellent | good | intermediate | bad | very_bad | horrible | very_horrible | impassable
Specifies the physical usability of a way for wheeled vehicles due to surface regularity/flatness. See
Key:smoothness
for more details.
surface
paved | unpaved | asphalt | concrete | paving_stones | sett | cobblestone | metal | wood | compacted | fine_gravel | gravel | pebblestone | plastic | grass_paver | grass | dirt | earth | mud | sand | ground
See
Key:surface
for more details.
tactile_paving
yes | no
A paving in the ground to be followed with a blindman's stick.
tracktype
grade1 | grade2 | grade3 | grade4 | grade5
To describe the quality of the surface. See
Key:tracktype
for more information.
traffic_calming
bump | hump | table | island | cushion | yes | etc.
Features used to slow down traffic. See
Key:traffic calming
for more details.
trail_visibility
excellent | good | intermediate | bad | horrible | no
Applies to
highway
path
highway
footway
highway
cycleway
and
highway
bridleway
. A classification for hiking trails visibility
trailblazed
yes | no | poles | cairns | symbols
Applies to
highway
=*
. Describing trail blazing and marking. See
Key:trailblazed
for more information.
trailblazed:visibility
excellent | good | intermediate | bad | horrible | no
Applies to
trailblazed
=*
. A classification for visibility of trailblazing. See
Key:trailblazed:visibility
for more information.
turn
left | slight_left | through | right | slight_right | merge_to_left | merge_to_right | reverse
The key turn can be used to specify the direction in which a way or a lane will lead.
width
The width of a feature.
winter_road
yes
A highway functions during winter, probably can't be driven in summer.
Other highway features
highway
bus_stop
A small bus stop. Optionally one may also use
public_transport
stop_position
for the position where the vehicle stops and
public_transport
platform
for the place where passengers wait.
highway
crossing
A.k.a. crosswalk. Pedestrians can cross a street here; e.g., zebra crossing
highway
cyclist_waiting_aid
Street furniture for cyclists that are intended to make waiting at esp. traffic lights more comfortable.
highway
elevator
An elevator or lift, used to travel vertically, providing passenger and freight access between pathways at different floor levels.
highway
emergency_bay
An area beside a highway where you can safely stop your car in case of breakdown or emergency.
highway
emergency_access_point
Sign number which can be used to define your current position in case of an emergency. Use with
ref
NUMBER_ON_THE_SIGN
. See also
emergency
access_point
highway
give_way
A "give way," or "Yield" sign
emergency
phone
A calling device can be used to tell on your current position in case of an emergency. Use with
ref
NUMBER_ON_THE_SIGN
highway
hitchhiking
Like a bus_stop but for free, uncertain, spontaneous rides with strangers.
highway
ladder
A vertical or inclined set of steps or rungs intended for climbing or descending of a person with the help of hands.
highway
milestone
Highway location marker
highway
mini_roundabout
Similar to roundabouts, but at the center there is either a painted circle or a fully
traversable
island. In case of an untraversable center island,
junction
roundabout
should be used.
Rendered as anti-clockwise by default
direction
anticlockwise
. To render clockwise add the tag
direction
clockwise
highway
motorway_junction
Indicates a junction (UK) or exit (US).
ref
=*
should be set to the exit number or junction identifier. (Some roads – e.g., the A14 – also carry junction numbers, so the tag may be encountered elsewhere despite its name)
highway
passing_place
The location of a passing space
highway
platform
A platform at a bus stop or station.
highway
rest_area
Place where drivers can leave the road to rest, but not refuel.
highway
services
A service station to get food and eat something, often found at motorways
highway
speed_camera
A fixed road-side or overhead speed camera.
highway
speed_display
A dynamic electronic sign that displays the speed of the passer-by motorist.
highway
stop
A stop sign
highway
street_lamp
A street light, lamppost, street lamp, light standard, or lamp standard is a raised source of light on the edge of a road, which is turned on or lit at a certain time every night
highway
toll_gantry
A toll gantry is a gantry suspended over a way, usually a motorway, as part of a system of electronic toll collection. For a toll booth with any kind of barrier or booth see:
barrier
toll_booth
highway
traffic_mirror
Mirror that reflects the traffic on one road when direct view is blocked.
highway
traffic_signals
Lights that control the traffic
highway
trailhead
Designated place to start on a trail or route
highway
turning_circle
A turning circle is a rounded, widened area usually, but not necessarily, at the end of a road to facilitate easier turning of a vehicle. Also known as a
cul de sac
highway
turning_loop
A widened area of a highway with a non-traversable island for turning around, often circular and at the end of a road.
highway
User Defined
All commonly used values
according to
Taginfo
This table is a wiki template with a default description in English.
Editable here
Assumptions
Unpaved road of major importance, example of a
tertiary
road on
Highway Tag Africa
Forestry road not used as link between settlements, correctly tagged as
highway
track
surface
asphalt
tracktype
grade1
Only
motorway
and
motorway_link
indicate quality. Other road types, from
trunk
to
tertiary
to
residential
service
path
footway
cycleway
or
track
, do not imply anything about road quality, only
importance
and
intended main use
In a region with poor infrastructure, a road of highest importance, forming the main road network there, should be
trunk
, regardless of being a high-quality wide asphalt road or a low-quality narrow track worse than
service
in other regions. Examples include the Kolyma Highway (P-504) and the Vilyuy Highway (A-331) in the Russian Far East, and a long stretch of the Trans-Amazonian Highway (BR-230) and BR-319 in the North Region of Brazil.
A typical
primary
can also vary drastically between different regions on the planet. Some
primary
roads in parts of
Africa
, Asia, South America, Canada, Alaska, Australia and Iceland are unpaved. Examples include the Anadyr Highway (A-384) in the Russian Far East and the Juba–Rumbek Road (route 69) in South Sudan.
It is highly recommended to add tags describing road quality, such as
surface
=*
. In one region, it may be obvious that all
tertiary
roads are paved and all
track
ways are not paved, but this kind of assumption does not work worldwide. Tagging at least some common values allows building a set of default values for each area.
In the absence of
surface
=*
tracktype
=*
and other tags describing road quality, one may try to extrapolate this information from the value of the highway tag. This should be fine-tuned for each region.
See also
Statistics about tagged roads (length for each country with history, possibility to display info about specific road class) [Archived]
Possible tagging mistakes
road
More details at tag
info
road=*
If you know
places with this tag
, verify if it could be tagged with another tag.
Automated edits are
strongly discouraged
unless
you really know what you are doing
Highways
Roads
motorway
trunk
primary
secondary
tertiary
unclassified
residential
service
Link Roads
motorway_link
trunk_link
primary_link
secondary_link
tertiary_link
motorway_junction
Special
living street
pedestrian
bicycle road
cyclestreet
track
bus guideway
busway
raceway
road
construction
escape
Paths
footway
cycleway
bridleway
path
steps
escalator
corridor
Special lanes
sidewalk
cycleway lane
cycleway tracks
bus and cyclists
bus lanes
Lanes
number of lanes
direction instructions ("turn lanes")
signposts
See also
conditional restrictions
turn restrictions
highway tagging samples
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Key descriptions for group "highways"
Key descriptions
Key descriptions with status "approved"
Highways
Tagging Mistakes
Routing Tags
Top-level keys
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