Key:waterway
From OpenStreetMap
| Other languages: | +/- |
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| English • |
 waterway |
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| Description: The waterway tag is used to mark rivers or other kind of waterways. |
| Group: Waterway |
| Element: help
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| Implies: |
| Tagwatch: help |
Summary
The waterway key is the primary tag used to map flowing water and everything related to it. The ways should point downstream, i.e. the direction of water flow (taken from Proposed features/Lock)
Often this kind of way can be mapped via the Landsat or Yahoo! aerial images.
If you like to map coastlines take a look at natural=coastline. Stagnant water like lakes should be marked with natural=water.
How to Map
Streams and rivers up to 3 meters wide should be tagged waterway=stream. Natural rivers up to approximately 12m wide should be tagged as waterway=river. Larger rivers can be tagged with waterway=riverbank.
Storm sewers and streams rerouted through artificial underground systems should be tagged as waterway=drain.
Canals (artificial open waterways) should be tagged as waterway=canal. Lock gates should be tagged as waterway=lock_gate. Places for ships longer than the width of the river to turn around should be nodes tagged as waterway=turning_point.
A mooring spot should be a node, tagged as waterway=mooring. Weirs (barriers across a river to divert water, but allowing water to flow over the top, mostly for industrial purposes) should be tagged as waterway=weir.
Docks should be tagged as waterway=dock. Boatyards should be tagged as waterway=boatyard.
A bridge carrying water should be tagged as bridge=aqueduct in addition to the tag for the waterway itself.
Caravans: A fresh water supply location should be tagged waterway=water_point while a dumping station should be tagged waterway=waste_disposal.
Values
| Key | Value | Element | Comment | Rendering | Photo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| waterway | river | 
| For narrow rivers which will be rendered as a line. For larger rivers see waterway=riverbank (Other languages). | 
|  |
| waterway | riverbank | 
| Used for larger rivers, to define an area between the opposite riverbanks. | 
| |
| waterway | canal |
| An artificial open waterway used for transportation, waterpower, or irrigation.(Other languages). | ||
| waterway | stream |
| a naturally-forming waterway that is too thin to be classed as a river. Maybe you can just jump over it. | | |
| waterway | drain |
| An artificial waterway for carrying storm water or industrial discharge. |  | |
| waterway | dock | 
| An 'enclosed' area of water used for loading, unloading, building or repairing ships. | ||
| waterway | lock_gate |
| A thing to raise/lower the water level for vessels, often found in canals. | ||
| waterway | turning_point |
| A place to turn the driving direction for vessels, where the boats are longer than the river/canal is wide. | ||
| waterway | boatyard |
| Boat yard - a place for constructing, repairing and storing vessels out of the water. | ||
| waterway | water_point |
| A place to get fresh water e.g. for caravans. | ||
| waterway | weir |
| A barrier built across a river, sometimes to divert water for industrial purposes. Water can still flow over the top. |  | |
| waterway | dam |
| A wall built across a river or stream to impound the water. A dam normally does not have water flowing over the top of it. | ||
| mooring | yes/private/no |
| A length of bank where boats are explicitly permitted to moor. | ||
| waterway | User Defined |
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This table is a wiki template with a default description in English. Editable here.
