Been looking at the use of pier vs boardwalk along the coast, and I’m seeing some examples of bridge=boardwalk used out over the water. Am I right that these should instead be tagged as man_made=pier?
Also (sorry, going down a bit of a rabbit hole here) how would you add those where a initial section starts on dry land, e.g. at a beach, before continuing out over water? Would you add the whole thing just as a pier, or split it into a short boardwalk bit followed by a pier bit? Feel free to tell me I’m overthinking a few metres of planking
Your example of a boardwalk is perhaps a bit of a borderline case but I would probably also map it as a boardwalk since it looks to mostly be over land. According to the OSM-wiki a boardwalk is “a raised pathway built over the natural ground surface”, this includes “wet” terrain.
However, I am not so sure about
as a general rule for a boardwalk. I see many examples of man_made=pier mapped along shorelines (sometimes partly over it) for example in marinas as places to swim from and/or to moor small boats.
I agree. Piers usually extend out into the water, boardwalks usually go along side the shoreline.
You can also look at the function of it, piers are “primarily used for docking boats, fishing, and recreation”, ie. they provide easier access to the water from the land. Whereas a boardwalk is usually built for people to go for a scenic walk along/over the water/wetlands/intertidal area. On the other hand a bridge is usually built to span from point A to point B across a body of water or valley.
Another thing I’ve wondered is if there is a particular reason why the piers are often mappen using a closed way? I’ve only been mapping them with an open way or an area.
okay you got me, that does look a bit like a pier and a bit like a boardwalk, and seems to provide both functions. In that case it does look like you could tag it as both boardwalk and pier.
can you have boardwalk on a pier?
I read this as a boardwalk on top of/above/as a second level over a pier, but I think you might have meant a boardwalk along a pier.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m certainly not trying to trying to “get you”. I’m genuinely wondering whether it isn’t incorrect to map a bridge=boardwalk on top of a man_made=pier? I would always choose one or the other.
But is this not just one thing a pier can be used for? The wiki also mentions it can serve as a “promenade” or “pedestrian walkway”. Besides at least in here Denmark many mapped piers along the coast are used exclusively for bathing or “promenading” and have no option for mooring.
In my view, at least in the OSM context, the key difference between a boardwalk and a pier is what they are built over. Boardwalks over land (including wetlands), whilst piers extend out into “open water”. But after this discussion, I’m beginning to question myself
As I said earlier, this one is very much an edge case, & I don’t think anybody is going to say That’s wrong, regardless of how it’s mapped! (As long as it’s one or the other. not both together)
Perhaps I confused myself by asking about two different things at the same time. But I actually think we’re more or less in agreement.
Although I personally would still argue that Kalvebod Bølge is a pier (if you go by the wiki-descriptions), I can acknowledge that this might be a bit of an edge case. But I don’t see anyone objecting to the fact that it is wrong to superimpose the two things on top of one another, as has been done in this instance.
Since a boardwalk should not be mapped as an area, I will assume it is reasonable to correct this one to a highway=footway + surface=wood (as it was also mapped originally) on the pier.
