Topic: Tag Alias: road -> street

Posted under Tag Alias and Implication Suggestions

Aliasing road → street
Link to alias

Reason:

Both are the same thing, a designated pathway for cars and other vehicles.
Both tags have a similar frequency of use (around 500 posts each), so the direction of the alias doesn't matter too much.

EDIT: The tag alias road -> street (forum #234564) has been rejected by @Rainbow_Dash.

Updated by auto moderator

BlueDingo said:
Not all roads are streets. -1

Define a road, define a street. What is the difference? Is the difference actually substantial enough to have them separate?

I understand that a 'street' is normally seen as a city road, properly constructed with markings and gutters, while a 'road' can include anything down to a dirt path.
For this reason, the alias should probably be reversed, to streetroad.

Updated by anonymous

Genjar

Former Staff

Streets are public roads, but not all roads are streets.

Plus one for the reverse alias, if it is needed. And it seems to be, since these aren't tagged with any consistency.

Updated by anonymous

According to Google:

  • Road: A wide way leading from one place to another, especially one with a specially prepared surface which vehicles can use.
  • Street: A public road in a city, town, or village, typically with houses and buildings on one or both sides.

So one is a type of the other.

Genjar said:
Plus one for the reverse alias, if it is needed. And it seems to be, since these aren't tagged with any consistency.

Some images with the street tag only show an alleyway. You might wanna consider cleanup first.

Updated by anonymous

Huh. Only recently I watched a video on streets, roads, stroads, and what the difference between them are. https://youtube.com/watch?v=ORzNZUeUHAM
Quite an interesting watch, strongly recommended.

I'm not entirely sure if that difference is important for the tagging purposes.
Opinions?

bitwolfy said:
Huh. Only recently I watched a video on streets, roads, stroads, and what the difference between them are. https://youtube.com/watch?v=ORzNZUeUHAM
Quite an interesting watch, strongly recommended.

I'm not entirely sure if that difference is important for the tagging purposes.
Opinions?

IMO it's like the difference between a couch and a sofa: too minor and not likely to be known by the average layperson, either for tagging or for searching.

Genjar

Former Staff

bitwolfy said:
I'm not entirely sure if that difference is important for the tagging purposes.
Opinions?

Would be weird to tag street for country roads, etc. Like I said four years ago: +1 for reverse.
Subtags for paved/unpaved roads might be useful, though.

+1 for reversing per Genjar, in my mind a street has houses/buildings and etc. A road is just a road.

faucet said:
The bulk update request #2278 is pending approval.

create alias street (3382) -> road (2811) # duplicate of has blocking transitive relationships, cannot be applied through bur

Reason: reversing per above, other one needs to be rejected first but this will make it easier to count the votes

Could there be a possibility where you can see the street, but not the road (e.g., looking out a car window and seeing the sidewalk only, but not the street)?

thegreatwolfgang said:
Could there be a possibility where you can see the street, but not the road (e.g., looking out a car window and seeing the sidewalk only, but not the street)?

This gets deeper and deeper - just keep both tags separate maybe?

My opinion hasn't changed; most people won't know or care about the technical difference between a "road" and a "street", whether for tagging or searching. We might as well tag avenues, parkways, boulevards, drives, turnpikes, and the rest of them.

strikerman said:
My opinion hasn't changed; most people won't know or care about the technical difference between a "road" and a "street", whether for tagging or searching. We might as well tag avenues, parkways, boulevards, drives, turnpikes, and the rest of them.

agree - they serve the same practical purpose to those searching and tagging

strikerman said:
My opinion hasn't changed; most people won't know or care about the technical difference between a "road" and a "street", whether for tagging or searching. We might as well tag avenues, parkways, boulevards, drives, turnpikes, and the rest of them.

achtungmaybe said:
agree - they serve the same practical purpose to those searching and tagging

I don't know about that. In my opinion, street and road are still uniquely distinct enough to be kept separate.

strikerman said:
Just so we're on the same page, how do you define a "road", a "street", and a "road + street"?

  • A road is a path designed for vehicle travel. Many will be paved, but more primitive roads will be constructed of dirt or gravel.
  • A street is a "road" that belongs to a populated area such as a city, town, neighbourhood. Heavily associated with urban areas, streets can be recognized by the presence of a sidewalk, or a street light.
    • May not involve the actual visible presence of the road itself.
  • A road + street is where you can actually see both the road and the street.
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