Tag:railway=station

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Public-images-osm logo.svg railway = station
Paddington Station.jpg
Description
A railway station. Edit this description in the wiki page. Edit this description in the data item.
Rendering in OSM Carto
Rendering-railway-tram stop-mapnik.png.png
Rendering in OSM Carto area
Landuse-industrial.png
Group: railways
Used on these elements
may be used on nodesshould not be used on waysmay be used on areas (and multipolygon relations)should not be used on relations (except multipolygon relations)
Useful combination
See also
Status: de facto
Main article: Railway stations

Railway stations (including main line, light rail, subway, etc.) are places where goods or passengers are loaded and unloaded. railway=station should be tagged preferably as an area covering the whole station (tracks, buildings, platforms, etc.), or as a node, placed at the practical centre of the station (i.e. near platforms).

How to map

Element types

As an area

area The area of a station begins at the entry signal at one side and ends at the entry signals at the other side. It must represent the station grounds, not only the station building (which, if it exists, should be tagged with building=train_station).

Add—among others—all railway=* elements in the station (incl. the railway=station area) to a railway=facility relation as its members. (See railway=facility for further guidance.)

If the practical centre of the station does not coincide with its geometrical centre (i.e. the renderer shows its label way off any platform) use a type=label relation.[1]

More complete tagging of a railway station

As a node

node If mapped as a node it is usually an unconnected node in the middle of the station (within the platform area). It should not be part of a railway=rail way. There should be only one railway=station element for each station (see One feature, one OSM element).

Simple tagging of a railway station

Tags

Key Value Property Description Default value
railway station Station
public_transport station Station Only if the station is public and mapped as a node.[1]
subway yes/no Subway station This is a subway station. The tagging scheme does not have a distinction between train and subway stations. no
name <station name> Station name Name of the station. Use the name on the signs on the station building or at platforms, for example "Köln Hbf".
railway:ref <station code> Station code The code used for the station. In North America, this might be something like NYP for New York Penn Station or OSB for Old Saybrook Station if it's an Amtrak station. In Germany, the Ril 100 code would be something like KN for Neuss Hbf. Abbreviations used by companies other than the operator can be tagged using railway:ref:(company)=*.
uic_ref <number> UIC reference number Number of the station according to UIC.
uic_name <name> UIC name Name of the station according to UIC.
railway:station_category <station_category> Station category Category of the station, in Germany see details.
operator <operator_name> Operator Operator of the station.
network <network_name> Network Name of the network the station belongs to.
operating_times <syntax like opening_hours=*> operating times When is the station manned (i.e. when do employees interlock switches and signals)? This tag does not cover opening hours of ticket counters.
start_date <date> Date of opening Date the station was put into service. For formatting, see start_date=*.
end_date <date> Date of closing Date the station was taken out of service. For formatting, see end_date=*.
image <URL> Image The URL of an image of the station (If possible, images from Wikimedia Commons should be used).
ele <number> Elevation Elevation of the station in metres.
wikipedia <lang>:<article name> Wikipedia article Article on Wikipedia. Tag the key in the format <language_code>:<Article name>, for example wikipedia=en:London King's Cross railway station.

Station types

Where a mainline station and metro station (or other railway like station) share the same station building, consider if they should be modelled as separate stations or as a single station. The associated Wikipedia articles of the facilities might assist with the decision. If the facilities are run by separate organisations[2] (for example a heritage station next to a mainline station) then it is probably better to map them using two separate railway=station tags.

For freight stations, add railway:traffic_mode=freight. Data consumers should consider that not all railway stations are passenger-only.

Distinction between halt and station

Station or halt?

The distinction between railway=halt and railway=station might differ from country to country. A halt is occasionally distinguished by its smaller size compared to a station, although it's unclear what size defines the difference. It can also be classified as a request stop. To make it explicitly clear, tag a request stop station as request_stop=yes.

  • In Belgium, railway=station is only for staffed stations. NMBS/SNCB stations without any station building or stations where ticket offices are permanently closed are tagged as railway=halt.
  • In Denmark, Hungary and German-speaking countries, stations without points ("switches") where only passenger trains stop are tagged as halt. For more information see the German page.

Things to avoid

  • Do not add the words "railway station" in the name=*; i.e. avoid name=Station Newton
  • Do not use abbreviations, even if the railway company use them. Use short_name=* in addition.
  • If the official name in documents differs from the name signs at the station, use official_name=*.
  • Do not tag the station area with landuse=railway as this is already implied by railway=station.

Examples

See Karlsruhe Central Station for reference. The Gare du Nord, in Paris also applies this model (with references to various networks for long distance lines, high-speed lines, regional commuter trains and subways).

See also

Tags

Pages

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 https://community.openstreetmap.org/t/railway-station-as-an-area/104839
  2. For example, see Berlin Zoologischer Garten: S-Bahn / light rail in the north-west and heavy rail in the south-east.