Key:direction
+/- direction
Specifies the direction of a feature.
Tools for this tag
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The key direction is used in a variety of situations to specify the direction of a feature.
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Angles and cardinal directions
Angles and cardinal directions can be used to specify in which direction a feature, e.g. a traffic sign or a bench, faces.
| Value | Element | Description |
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| <number> |  
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The given number specifies the degrees from 0 to 359 in which the feature faces, where 0 is equal to northward. |
| <cardinal> |
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One of the cardinal directions, specified using uppercase characters [NWSE], e.g. NE means north-east. See the image below for all possible values and their meaning.
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This image shows all possible values for cardinal directions together with the corresponding degrees.
Examples
Bench facing east:
amenity=bench direction=E (or direction=90)
Stop sign facing north-north-west:
highway=stop direction=NNW
Synonyms
The values direction=north/south/east/west are used as synonyms for direction=N/S/E/W (see above) and should be treated the same way. Combinations like e.g. north-east should not be specified in that form.
Mini-Roundabouts
On highway=mini_roundabout nodes, a different variant of the direction key is used.
| Value | Element | Description |
|---|---|---|
| anticlockwise |
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The roundabout runs anti-clockwise. |
| clockwise |
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The roundabout runs clockwise. |
Please note, that the default rendering for mini-roundabouts is anti-clockwise when not specified.
Examples
Mini-roundabout running clockwise:
highway=mini_roundabout direction=clockwise
Obsolete uses
Steps
The tags direction=up and direction=down have been used on highway=steps, to specify if the stairs lead up or down in the direction of the way. This has since been obsoleted by incline=up and incline=down.
Traffic signs
The tags direction=forward and direction=backward are rarely used to specify the direction of a traffic sign as was suggested here (example). As this is ambiguous in case the node belongs to more than one way it is strongly advised to use cardinal directions in this situation, if needed.
Route relations
The tags direction=forward and direction=backward are also used rarely in the route relation (example). The meaning is neither clear nor documented, but it might originate from this.
