The dataset download is available here: Street Lights
The GeoJSON file I have prepared shows the data after it was translated to the OSM schema. You can find the latest link to this on the wiki page under “Import Data” > “OSM Data Files”
License
I have checked that this data is compatible with the ODbL, and it has been confirmed compatible by the Legal Working Group.
This data is distributed under the Open Government Licence – British Columbia.
Abstract
This dataset contains 13,837 nodes, and after conversion to the OSM schema, comes in at 6.1 MB.
The dataset was converted to the OSM schema using a Python script which can be found on the wiki page (please excuse my poor Python, it’s been a while!).
I plan to conduct this import in one go using JOSM and the conflation plugin. There is little overlap with existing data so conflation shouldn’t be too complicated, and can be verified manually during the import process.
The list of converted tags can be found on the wiki page under “Data Transformation”, in table form.
This is my first import, so any feedback is greatly appreciated!
In terms of tagging, the operator:wikipedia=* key is redundant. name-suggestion-index used to add it pro forma but stopped a few years back. I split out a new City of Coquitlam (Q139888158) item to represent the municipal government and updated the database and name-suggestion-index to refer to it instead of Coquitlam (Q643215), which is now focused on Coquitlam the place.
I like the look of the light:*=* namespace, but I’m a bit worried about established conventions. An Overpass query for the older lamp_*=*returns 32,000~ results in BC, whereas light_source returns just over 100.
I do see that the trend line for light:*=* has risen substantially recently, and I’m not opposed to shifting standards, just curious your thoughts on the potential fragmentation/split.
Thank you! I appreciate you adding the new entry. I’ll update the script to use the City of Coquitlam entry, and drop the wikipedia tag.
I thought about it more overnight and decided I do quite like the light:*=* namespace. I’ve updated the script to use these tags, and updated the links on the wiki page. I’m also going to remove the links from the main forum post so I don’t have to keep updating them in two places!
I don’t see another realistic way to improve the state of tagging in OSM. With such an old tag (lamp_type has >15yrs of usage history), I expect there would be holdouts past the last trace of lamp_*=* being removed from all of OSM. But what’s the alternative? Decisions made 1-2 decades ago are permanent deficiencies?
To me, it’s kind of like the crossing=* vs crossing:*=* thing. The main “identifying tags” (in this case, highway=street_lamp; in that one, (highway|footway)=crossing) are preserved and so some manner of critical backwards compatibility is maintained, but the details hopefully move over time to better schemas - ideally through both new additions and removal of old tags as things get updated.
Still, I do think a valid argument against light:*=* can be made, so it may be good to wait to hear from others!
It is a bit late - but this import really should have add highway=street_lamp for street lamps. Correctly tagged street lamp should have highway=street_lamp and possibly extra some novel tagging schemas.
(and whether trying to deprecate and replace widely used tagging schemas is a good idea in the first place is a separate topic)
And as I understand from Changeset: 184074975 | OpenStreetMap there was undiscussed removal of already tagged highway=street_lamp which is outright invalid
I’m a big fan of this proposed-but-somewhat-in-use light:*=* schema, as mentioned before, but I do also always set highway=street_lamp, at least for the lights that are genuine streetlights. I don’t see the two as conflicting, in the same way that highway=bus_stop can coexist with the PTv2 public_transport=platform approach.
The removal of the existing highway=street_lamp tags on existing lamps was an oversight during the conflation process. From the discussion I’m seeing, I agree with the sentiment to include both the highway=* and light:*=* namespaces (especially as - for this import - they are all on-street lamps).
Maybe in the future if light takes over, we can go back and remove highway but I think for now having both is a good middle ground.
Does anyone have any thoughts for or against this? If others agree, I’m happy to go back and add the tag where needed, as I of course take ownership and responsibility for the upkeep of this import
