Key:bus

bus
Description
Legal access permissions for public transport buses, OR the type of public transport vehicle.
Group: restrictions
Used on these elements
Documented values: 5
Useful combination
highway=* amenity=parking public_transport=* lanes:bus=*
See also
access=* psv=* tourist_bus=*
Status: de facto
bus=* More details at taginfo
Tools for this tag
taginfo · AD · AT · BR · BY · CH · CN · CZ · DE · DK · FI · FR · GB · GR · HU · IN · IR · IT · LI · LU · JP · KP · KR · NL · PL · PT · RU · ES · AR · MX · CO · BO · CL · EC · PY · PE · UY · VE · TW · UA · US · VN overpass-turbo OSM Tag History

The bus tag in OSM is used for buses that are acting as public transport vehicle.

In most countries a bus is a larger public service vehicle or public transport vehicle used to transport passengers, with more than 9 or 12 seating positions, but the specific definition may vary by location. Long-distance and inter-city bus and coach=* vehicles may or may not be included. Trolleybuses are usually included.

There are two uses of this tag:

1. To specify legal access restrictions for buses acting as public transport vehicles,
2. to specify the type of passenger public transport vehicles that use a stop or station.

Also see the more common access tag psv=* which includes public transport buses as well as other public service vehicles.

How to map

As an access tag

Add this tag to roads, lanes or other features which are designated for public transport buses.

• the original use of bus=*, since mid-2009, is as an Access tag, with values such as bus=yes, bus=designated and bus=no
• Add bus=designated to a feature, such as a highway=*, specifically designated for use by public transport buses.
• Add bus=no to a feature where access by public transport buses is prohibited.
• The tag bus=yes is also frequently used for features where public transport buses are permitted.
• List of possible values with descriptions: see Key:access
• All used values on Taginfo

To specify the use of a public transport bus stop or platform

• Since 2011, some mappers have used bus=yes with highway=bus_stop, public_transport=platform, or both, to specify that a feature is a bus stop. This is the most common use of bus=yes.
  • Note that bus=yes with highway=bus_stop and amenity=bus_station is redundant, as bus=yes is implied by these tags. However, this combination is common in part because editors like iD will throw an error if highway=bus_stop is missing a bus=yes.
• The Public Transport proposal in 2011 approved using bus=yes with public_transport=stop_position on a node on the highway=* way to show where a bus stops on the street.
• Some mappers have used bus=no with either feature to specify that buses do not stop at a bus stop or stop position where they might be expected to stop - for example, on a road shared by trams and buses.
• Also see trolleybus=* which is used in this way, but specifically for electric buses powered by electric overhead wires.

To specify the type of bus service

• Some mapper use route=bus + bus=minibus instead of route=minibus
  • The latter can be used if there is a legal distinction between bus and minibus routes.
• Other mapper use the bus=* key to define the type of bus service (urban, suburban, interurban, intercity)

Possible tagging mistakes

access=bus

More details at taginfo

• access=bus ‒ Use bus=yes or bus=designated instead

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!

See also

• access=* - general access restrictions
• psv=* - common tag for all public transport motor vehicles, including minibuses, buses, and possibly shared taxis and taxis.
• trolleybus=* - specific tag for trolleybuses.
• school_bus=* - specific tag for school buses.
• tourist_bus=* - less common access tag for vehicles of the bus class which are not acting as public service buses.
• coach=* - uncommon access tag for long-distance buses, usually between different towns or cities
• lanes:bus=* - to mark the travel lanes reserved for buses only on a way.
• bus:lanes=* - for describing the legal accessibility per lane (Example value: yes|yes|designated).
• lanes:psv=* - to mark the travel lanes reserved for all PSV on a way.
• oneway:psv=* - to override oneway=* for PSV
• oneway:bus=* - to override oneway=* for buses only