Is tracktype=grade2 also for trails with large naturally occuring pieces of rock?

But now we have smoothness as the indicator of road quality…

I think the essential service that a map should offer is that it helps the user decide how to go from A to B in the most efficient way. For this, the user needs to decide which roads to take, and the map should give him information to help in that decision. In order of priority, I think these should be:

  1. Usability of the road: can the user use this road with the vehicle he intends to use, or would it be preferable to take another better road that is longer? smoothness serves this need for route planning.
  2. Recognition of the road: once the user arrives at the road junction, he has to be able to recognise the road he planned to take by comparing it to information that the map is giving. surface serves this need by describing the appearance of the road surface. Thanks to the availability of GPS positioning, this aspect has become less essential.
  3. Risk evaluation that the chosen road may be less usable than since it was last surveyed. tracktype serves this need (as it is now, in my interpretation of the wiki), by giving some information on how the surface of the track might have changed because of wet weather and use by heavy vehicles: how likely is it that because of wet weather, the surface has become so soft that the user’s vehicle might get stuck, or that it has been deformed by heavy vehicle traffic so that ruts have formed and the ground clearance of the user’s vehicle will not be enough to pass without damage? It gives an impression of seasonal variations in smoothness.
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