Tag:man_made=embankment
 man_made = embankment
|
 |
| Description |
|---|
An artificial steep slope  
|
| Rendering in openstreetmap-carto |
|
| Group: Infrastructure |
| Used on these elements |
    |
| See also |
| Status: de facto |
|
|
| Tools for this tag |
| Wikidata |
| Q10505824 |
man_made=embankment is used to map an artificial slope or steep incline built for example to provide a level platform on top for a road or railway line (See 
embankment) or to otherwise shape or stabilize the terrain. Such a structure can be built from compacted earth (often stabilized with grass or other plants) or from loose or set stones.
How to map
man_made=embankment should be added to a way drawn with the lower side on right side of the way's direction. It is often rendered with a line featuring dots, triangles or other shapes on the right side to indicate the direction of slope. This is similar to the technigue used for barrier=retaining_wall and natural=cliff.
Raised roads, railways, etc.
When mapping a raised highway, railway, waterway or similar with artificial slopes on both sides embankment=yes can be used to document this in a very compact form without additional geometries. Some mappers prefer to map the embankment separately, to do that you map two separate ways on both side of the road or railway line in different directions (according to the rule above) and tag them man_made=embankment.
If the primary function of an artificially raised ridge is protection from flooding you should use man_made=dyke to indicate that.
Natural features with similar scope
- natural=earth_bank - earth bank is an abrupt change in ground level which can be clearly distinguished from its surroundings
- natural=gully - small scale cut in relief created by water erosion
Related tags
- embankment=* - used to indicate a raised road or other linear feature with embankments on both sides
- cutting=* - the opposite situation with slopes towards the feature in question
- natural=cliff - for vertical or near vertical drops of natural origin
- barrier=retaining_wall - for a artificial vertical or near vertical built wall with a function similar to man_made=embankment
- man_made=dyke - for an embankment (or levee) to redirect or prevent flooding by a river, lake or sea
Examples
Possible Tagging Mistakes
Automated edits are strongly discouraged unless you really know what you are doing!