Australian Tagging Guidelines/Transportation

Overview

This page documents the Australian Mapping Community's preferred implementation of transpiration guidelines and to keep a common record of Australia-specific mapping methods for mapping railways, marine navigation, aeroways,  and public transport networks.

Appropriate data sourcing

As with all contributions to OpenStreetMap, updates to public transportation infrastructure and routes need to be compatible with the OpenStreetMap license. Some states and territories' public transport authority do not have license-compatible data, and cannot be used as a source for updating the map. If in doubt, refer to the Australian Data Sources page, which includes all known license-compatible sources of Australian spatial data.

Infrastructure

Roads, paths and highways

For tagging guidelines for road, cycling, and pedestrian infrastructure refer to Australian Tagging Guidelines/Roads and Australian Tagging Guidelines/Cycling and Foot Paths.

Bus lanes

Each state and territory has their own laws and regulations restricting which vehicles can use bus lanes. These restrictions can be mapped using the appropriate transport mode restrictions in the table below

Bus lane access tagging per state/territory.

S/T	Permitted vehicles			S/T	Permitted vehicles
	Bus lane	Bus only lane			Bus lane	Bus only lane
ACT	motor_vehicle=no bus=designated psv=yes motorcycle=yes hire_car=permit bicycle=yes emergency=yes	not used		SA	motor_vehicle=no bus=designated taxi=yes bicycle=yes emergency=yes	motor_vehicle=no bus=designated emergency=yes
NSW	motor_vehicle=no bus=designated psv=yes bicycle=yes motorcycle=yes hire_car=permit emergency=yes	motor_vehicle=no bus=designated emergency=yes		TAS	motor_vehicle=no bus=designated bicycle=yes motorcycle=yes emergency=yes	not used
NT	not used			VIC	motor_vehicle=no bus=designated emergency=yes bicycle=yes* coach=yes* * unless signed otherwise	not used
QLD	motor_vehicle=no bus=designated taxi=yes limousine=yes bicycle=yes emergency=yes	motor_vehicle=no bus=designated emergency=yes		WA	motor_vehicle=no bus=designated emergency=yes	not used

Example

access:lanes:conditional= |no| @ (Mo-Fr 06:00-20:00;Sa,Su,PH 10:00-18:00)
psv:lanes:conditional= |designated| @ (Mo-Fr 06:00-20:00;Sa,Su,PH 10:00-18:00)

Example of a conditionally-active bus lanes Castlereagh Street Castlereagh Street, Sydney

Guided busways

A bus navigating Adelaide's O-Bahn O-Bahn.

Guided buses are not common features in Australia. The only guided busway in Australia is the O-Bahn Busway in Adelaide, and other uses of the highway=bus_guideway tag are almost certainly tagging errors.

Rail

A freight train on the South Western Railway South Western Railway at Yarloop Yarloop.

Australian railways are tagged consistent with broader OpenStreetMap tags and standards, with country-specific tag values where appropriate. Railways in Australia are highly varied, from the major interstate rail network and the National Land Transport Network, to small, privately operated heritage railways and tramways. Electrified tracks are mapped with contact_line=*; electrified third rails are not used in Australia.

Nearly all "train systems" in Australia are considered mainline railway systems, and are accurately tagged using railway=rail. The railway=subway tag should only be applied to rapid transit systems which are operated separately from the wider rail network. Currently, only the Sydney Metro and the under-construction Metro Tunnel in Melbourne meets this criteria.

Rail infrastructure ownership

The ownership of the rail infrastructure should be captured using the standard ownership=* values.

Australian rail ownership=* and owner=* values

Ownership	Description	Common owners	Example
ownership=federal	Commonwealth-owned. This includes property of federal government-owned corporations such as the Australian Rail Track Corporation.	owner=Australian Rail Track Corporation
ownership=state	Owned by a state or territory government. This includes property of state government agencies or state-owned corporations.	owner=Transport Asset Holding Entity owner=VicTrack
ownership=municipal	Owned by a local government. This includes property of local government agencies or council-owned corporations.
ownership=private	Owned by a private entity. This can include corporations and companies, as well as not-for-profit tourist railways and museums.

Rail gauges

Rail gauges in Australia

Tag	Rendering	Description		Example
railway=rail		gauge=1435 - standard gauge	Full-sized passenger or freight trains in the standard gauge for the country or state.	Trans-Australian Railway Trans-Australian Railway
		gauge=1067 - narrow gauge
		gauge=1600 - broad gauge
railway=subway		gauge=1435	A metro system is a rapid transit train system.	Sydney Metro Northwest Sydney Metro Northwest

Maximum railway speeds

Each state and territory has their own standards for railway speed limit signs. These speed limits can be captured with maxspeed=*, and maxspeed:conditional=* if the limit only applies to certain class of locomotives.

Trams and light rail

There is no clear distinction between railway=tram and railway=light_rail, and the general recommendations highlight the importance of consistency across networks. Existing rail networks should not be changed between different tags without general agreement from the Australian Mapping Community.

Monorail

The now closed Sea World Monorail System Sea World Monorail System.

Monorails are not common features in Australia. There are currently no monorail systems operating in Australia. The last remaining operating system closed in 2022, being the monorail at SeaWorld (311851843 311851843) on the Gold Coast.

Public transport

Public transport schema

There are different tagging schema in use for mapping public transportation, and all have some level of use in Australia. In some cities and states routes have been systematically updated to the PTv2 schema (using such techniques as included in this guide), while routes in other parts of the country are being progressively updated as needed. When updating relations in Australia take note of the public_transport:version=* used for the route, and where possible update the relation to a newer schema.

Stops and platforms

Stop names

There is no established consensus for naming bus and tram stops in Australia. Stop names are not consistently applied within states (and some cities), and guidelines have previously documented conflicting advice. Local areas should be kept as consistently as possible until a naming standard is agreed among the Australian Mapping Community.

Stop name conventions and examples by state/territory

S/T	Mode	Description	Examples	Image
VIC	bus	The name of a bus stop typically consists of two parts: the road intersecting the bus route before or after the bus stop, or a nearby landmark the road on which the bus route travels at this bus stop The parts are combined with a slash (/): <part 1>/<part 2> Bus stops at larger bus stations often have an additional reference, for example Bay 5. Examples of larger bus stations in Melbourne are Reservoir Station or Moonee Ponds Interchange. The main bus stop sign does not always have a name printed. Sometimes it only shows the first part of the full bus stop name, sometimes it shows both parts with the second part in smaller font. All new bus stop signs introduced in 2021 have both parts. The name is always printed on the timetables at the bus stop. Currently, two common conventions are in use for this tag: the full name or only the first part. Nearby bus stops for different directions of the same bus route (for example, bus stops that are opposite to each other) often have the same name, but not always.	name=Lygon Street/Elgin Street name=Melbourne University/Swanston Street name=Reservoir Station/High Street (Bay 5)	Bus stop sign with design introduced in 2022 (regular bus stop). Bus stop sign with design introduced in 2022 (SmartBus bus stop)
	tram	The name of a tram stop typically consists of three parts: the stop number the road intersecting the tram route before or after the tram stop the road on which the tram route travels at this tram stop The parts are combined in this format: Stop <1.>: <2.> Currently, part 3 is not mapped.	name=Stop 13: Brunswick Street

Stop numbering

While each state and territory is different, most stops and stations will have a unique identifier assigned by the network (for example in VIC it is PTV) or operators in the network that is shown on signs and information boards , which should be mapped using ref=*. At large interchanges or stations, stops may also have unique platform or stand numbers, which should be mapped using local_ref=*.

ref=1128 Bus stop #1128 Bus stop #1128 - Dreamer Crescent, Chisholm, ACT	local_ref=1 ref=27658 Stand 1, Bus stop #27658 Stand 1, Bus stop #27658 - Scarborough Beach, Scarborough, WA

Stop numbering conventions and examples by state/territory

S/T	Mode	Description	Examples	Image
VIC	bus	Every bus stop has a unique ID across the entire network assigned and managed by PTV. This is a number between two and five digits (prefixed by ID.). This stop ID is consistently and clearly signed at every bus stop. Nearby bus stops for different directions of the same bus route (for example, bus stops that are opposite to each other) never have the same stop ID. Currently, two common conventions are used as shown in the example. Note that on the PTV website, the number in the URL of a bus stop (for example https://ptv.vic.gov.au/stop/12345) is different from the unique bus stop ID (which is ID.11177 for the example URL). This number in the URL is not always unique per bus stop. Sometimes, it represents nearby bus stops for different directions of the same bus route (for example, bus stops that are opposite to each other). Do not use the number in the URL in ref=*/ref:ptv=*.	ref=ID.2111 ref:ptv=2111	Unique bus stop ID at bus stop
	tram	Currently most of the tram stops are not tagged with a unique ID. The value commonly tagged in ref=* is the same number that is also part of the tram stop name (see above). The following unique IDs exist, but are not yet tagged: Every tram stop has a unique ID across the entire network assigned and managed by PTV. This is a number between two and five digits (prefixed by ID.). This stop ID is normally not mentioned at the tram stop, and can only be found on the PTV website. Nearby tram stops for different directions of the same tram route (for example, tram stops that are opposite to each other) never have the same stop ID. The Yarra Trams tramTRACKER ID of a tram stop. [1][2] This is a number with four digits. Every Yarra Trams tram stop has a unique tramTracker ID.	ref=3

Multiple reference numbers

There is no established consensus of how to tag networks with more than one reference number system for identifying stops and stations.

proposed ref=22 ref:ptv=1525

Networks and operators

The network=* and operator=* keys should be used consistently in each state and territory. Common values for each state and territory are listed below, and privately owned and operated services outside the public transportation network should be mapped with the appropriate values in a similar pattern.

Buses and coaches

The 209 bus 209 bus at UQ in Brisbane.

route=bus

		$1%
		$1%
		$1%
		$1%

More details at taginfo

More details at taginfo

Most states and territories have contracted multiple different companies to operate part of their network. Where there are multiple operators servicing a network, the operator=* for each relation=route should be limited to only the operator (or operators) of the specific route.

Bus/coach networks and operators by state/territory

S/T	Network network=*	Operator operator=*	Example
ACT	network=Transport Canberra	operator=ACTION	Bus 719 Bus 719
NSW	network=TfNSW - Sydney Buses	operator=Busabout operator=Busways operator=Forest Coach Lines operator=Hillsbus operator=Interline operator=Keolis Downer operator=Punchbowl Bus Company operator=Transdev NSW operator=Transit Systems	Bus 136 Bus 136
	network=TfNSW - Regional Coaches	operator=Bathurst Buslines operator=Berrima Buslines operator=Blue Mountains Transit operator=Busways operator=Coastal Liner Coaches operator=Dion's Bus Service operator=Hunter Valley Buses operator=Lithgow Buslines operator=Newcastle Transport operator=Nowra Coaches operator=Port Stephens Coaches operator=Picton Buslines operator=Premier Charters operator=Premier Illawarra operator=Qcity Transit operator=Red Bus Services operator=Rover Coaches operator=Shoal Bus operator=Stuarts Coaches
NT	network=Darwinbus network=AsBus	operator=Buslink operator=Territory Transit
QLD	network=Translink	South-East Queensland Network operator=Transport for Brisbane operator=Brisbane Bus Lines operator=Caboolture Bus Lines operator=Hornibrook Bus Lines operator=Kangaroo Bus Lines operator=Thompsons Bus Service operator=Park Ridge Transit operator=Clarks Logan City Bus Service operator=Kinetic Group operator=Mt Gravatt Bus Service operator=Transdev Queensland operator=Westside Bus Company operator=Bus Queensland operator=Southern Cross Transit operator=CDC Queensland	Bus 680 Bus 680
		Regional Network operator=Trans North Bus & Coach operator=Kinetic Group operator=Stewart & Sons operator=Wide Bay Transit operator=CDC Queensland operator=Polleys Coaches operator=GJ & LE Christensen Bus & Coach operator=Mackay Transit operator=Stradbroke Island Buses operator=Young's Bus Service operator=Glasshouse Country Coaches operator=Bus Queensland operator=Haidley's Panoramic Coaches operator=Whitsunday Transit	Bus 841 Bus 841
	network=Kelsian Group	operator=Transit Systems(North Stradbroke Island)	Bus 880 Bus 880
SA	network=Adelaide Metro network=Mount Gambier City Bus Service	operator=Adelaide Metro operator=BusBiz operator=Des's Transport operator=Kent Group operator=Link SA operator=Mount Gambier Bus Lines operator=Premier Stateliner operator=Sealink operator=Southlink operator=Yorke Peninsula Coaches	Bus 640 Bus 640
TAS	network=Metro Tasmania	operator=Calows Coaches operator=East Tamar Bus Lines operator=Manions Coaches operator=Merseylink operator=O'Driscoll Coaches operator=Redline Coaches operator=Tassielink operator=Metro Tasmania
VIC	network=PTV – Metropolitan Buses network=PTV – Regional Buses network=PTV – Regional Coaches	operator=Bacchus Marsh Coaches operator=Benalla Bus Lines operator=Broadmeadows Bus Service operator=Castlemaine Bus Lines operator=CDC Victoria operator=Christians Bus Lines operator=Cranbourne Transit operator=Dysons operator=Fallon's Bus Service operator=Harley's Bus Lines operator=Henty Highway Coach operator=Hutchinsons Bus Lines operator=Jacobsons Bus Lines operator=Kastoria Bus Lines operator=Kinetic operator=Kingston's Tours operator=Latrobe Valley Bus Lines operator=Little's Coaches operator=Martyrs Bus Service operator=Maryborough Transit operator=McHarry's operator=McIvor Transit operator=Mitchell Transit operator=Moonee Valley Bus Lines operator=Moreland Bus Lines operator=Newton's Bus Service operator=Panorama Coaches operator=Portland Bus Lines operator=Read and Brack operator=Ryan Bros Bus Service operator=Sandlant operator=Seymour Coaches operator=Sita Bus Lines operator=South Coast Bus operator=Sunbury Bus Service operator=Sunraysia Bus Lines operator=Swan Hill Bus Lines operator=Thomson's Bus Lines operator=Trotter's Coaches operator=Tullamarine Bus Lines operator=Ventura operator=Warragul Bus Lines operator=Warrnambool Bus Lines operator=Westernport Roadlines operator=Whitmore Bus Group operator=Wimmera Roadways	Bus 788 Bus 788
WA	network=Transperth network=TransRegional	operator=Path Transit operator=Swan Transit operator=Transdev	Green CAT 5F Green CAT 5F

Trains

route=train

		$1%
		$1%
		$1%
		$1%

More details at taginfo

More details at taginfo

A Seaford line Seaford line train at Goodwood railway station Goodwood railway station, Adelaide

Train networks and operators by state/territory

S/T	Network network=*	Operator operator=*	Example
ACT	network=NSW TrainLink Regional	operator=NSW TrainLink	Canberra Line Canberra Line
NSW	network=Sydney Trains	operator=Sydney Trains	Airport & South Line Airport & South Line
	network=NSW TrainLink Intercity	operator=NSW TrainLink	Southern Highlands Line Southern Highlands Line
	network=NSW TrainLink Regional		Dubbo Line Dubbo Line
QLD	network=Translink	operator=Queensland Rail	Cleveland Line Cleveland Line
	network=Queensland Rail Travel		Tilt Train Tilt Train
SA	network=Adelaide Metro	operator=Office of the Rail Commissioner	Grange Line Grange Line
VIC	network=PTV – Metropolitan Trains	operator=Metro Trains Melbourne	Alamein Line Alamein Line
	network=PTV – Regional Trains	operator=V/Line	Albury Line Albury Line
WA	network=Transperth	operator=Transperth	Fremantle Line Fremantle Line
	network=Transwa	operator=Transwa	Australind Line Australind Line

Rapid transit/metro

A Sydney Metro Northwest Sydney Metro Northwest train at Chatswood Chatswood, Sydney

Rapid transit/metro networks and operators by state/territory

S/T	Railway tag	Network network=*	Operator operator=*	Example
NSW	railway=subway	network=Sydney Metro	operator=Metro Trains Sydney	Sydney Metro Northwest Sydney Metro Northwest

Trams and light rail

The Route 70 tram Route 70 tram travelling on Flinders Street, Melbourne

route=tram

		$1%
		$1%
		$1%
		$1%

More details at taginfo

More details at taginfo

route=light_rail

		$1%
		$1%
		$1%
		$1%

More details at taginfo

More details at taginfo

Tram/light rail networks and operators by state/territory

S/T	Railway type railway=*	Name	Network network=*	Operator operator=*
ACT	tram	Canberra Metro Canberra Metro	network=Canberra Metro	operator=Canberra Metro Operations
NSW	light_rail	Newcastle Light Rail Newcastle Light Rail	network=Newcastle Transport	operator=Keolis Downer
		Sydney Light Rail	network=Sydney Light Rail	operator=Transdev Sydney
QLD	light_rail	G:Link G:Link	network=Translink	operator=Keolis Downer
SA	tram	Glenelg Tram Glenelg Tram	network=Adelaide Metro	operator=Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure
		Victor Harbor Horse Drawn Tram		operator=Victor Harbor Horse Drawn Tram
VIC	tram	Melbourne tram network	network=PTV – Metropolitan Trams	operator=Yarra Trams

Ferries

A South Perth Ferry South Perth Ferry at the Elizabeth Quay Ferry Terminal Elizabeth Quay Ferry Terminal, Perth

route=ferry

		$1%
		$1%
		$1%
		$1%

More details at taginfo

More details at taginfo

Ferry networks and operators by state/territory

S/T	Network network=*	Operator operator=*	Example
NSW	network=Sydney Ferries	operator=Sydney Ferries	Manly Ferry Manly Ferry
QLD	network=Translink	operator=RiverCity Ferries	CityCat CityCat
SA	-	operator=Sealink	Kangaroo Island Sealink Kangaroo Island Sealink
VIC	-	operator=Public Transport Victoria operator=Port Phillip Ferries operator=Western Port Ferries	Westgate Punt Westgate Punt
WA	network=Transperth	operator=Captain Cook Cruises	Transperth Ferry Transperth Ferry