Tag:route=ferry
 route = ferry
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| Description |
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The route of a public ferry or water bus. 
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| Rendering in OSM Carto |
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| Group: routes |
| Used on these elements |
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| Useful combination |
| Status: de facto |
| Tools for this tag |
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This tag is used on ways 
, which maps a ferry or water bus route on the sea, rivers, or other waterways. Ferries are a form of public transport that operate to connect road networks and to provide passenger service much like bus service. Some ferry systems consist of many routes, while others only provide a convenient means to visit an island or cross a river or lake.
route=ferry can be used for large ferries carrying passengers, bicycles, cars, trucks and even rail cars, as well as for small boats ferrying people over rivers and lakes or self-operated ferries.
How to map
Use the route=ferry tag to show the route of a ferry.
You can use the tag on a single way drawn along the whole route in most cases. In addition, the tag can also be added to a route relation 
containing all the ways.
How to map using a single way
Draw a way from one ferry terminal to another and add route=ferry and name=*.
The ferry route should start and end at a ferry terminal 
amenity=ferry_terminal. At the same point also the access road ends. Between the terminal and the coastal line, there may be a pier 
man_made=pier (which the initial section may be over land). If the pier is modeled as a linear way, add a highway=* tag to the pier, and if the pier is modeled as an area, create a separate highway=* feature that connects the ferry terminal to the greater road network. Car ferries have often a bridge between the quay wall and the docking point, which is tagged with highway=* + bridge=yes.
The ferry route must not branch in the water, so the route must always be drawn to the ferry dock. This is important for routing to work correctly.
Tags
| Key | Value | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| route=* | ferry | (mandatory) |
| motor_vehicle=* | yes / no | Whether the ferry allows motor vehicles (trucks, cars, motorcycles, ...). |
| hgv=* | yes / no | Whether the ferry allows heavy goods vehicles (freight trucks >3.5 tons). |
| motorcar=* | yes / no | Whether the ferry allows motorcars. |
| motorcycle=* | yes / no | Whether the ferry allows motorcycles. |
| bicycle=* | yes / no | Whether the ferry allows cyclists. |
| foot=* | yes / no | Whether the ferry allows foot passengers. |
| wheelchair=* | yes / no | Whether you can board in a wheelchair. |
| railway=* | yes / no | Whether the ferry allows railway. |
| access=* | * | For other access restriction tags. Also see Map Features#Restrictions. |
| operator=* | operator | Name of the company that operates the route. |
| network=* | network | A system of routes typically maintained or designated by a single agency or organization |
| name=* | individual name | The name of the route or line. |
| ref=* | reference | The reference number/code of a ferry route. |
| duration=* | duration | highly recommended for indicating how long the route takes ('00:05' is 5 minutes, '1:15' an hour fifteen, or '48:00' two days). Important to avoid large detours to avoid ferries for routers that underestimate the speed of ferries. OSRM and GraphHopper support this tag (on ways). Use HH:MM:SS, H:MM:SS, HH:MM, H:MM, MM, or M format. |
| interval=* | service interval | recommended for indicating how often services run on the ferry route. Use HH:MM:SS, H:MM:SS, HH:MM, H:MM, MM, or M format. Example: A ferry that runs every half hour is given the tag interval=00:30 (interval=30 or interval=00:30:00 are also valid). |
| fee=*/toll=* | yes / no | if you have to pay to cross. Both keys are of very similar popularity, about 500 uses as of 2019[1], see https://lists.openstreetmap.org/pipermail/tagging/2019-June/thread.html#46121 for discussion which tag is preferable |
| opening_hours=* | opening_hours | when can you expect the service to be active? (only if the ferry operates on a regular schedule) |
| reservation=* | yes / no / required | yes: reservation / booking possible to avoid long waiting times and/or ensure service will run, no: first come, first serve, required: no passage without a reservation / booking. |
| ferry=* | * | for the type of road the ferry route belongs to (used with the same values as highway=*). |
| ferry:cable=* | yes | A cable ferry (chain ferry, or reaction ferry) is a ferry that is guided or propelled by cables connected to both shores. |
| maxweight=* | * | Maximum weight of a vehicle. |
| maxlength=* | * | Maximum length of a vehicle. |
| maxwidth=* | * | Maximum width of a vehicle. |
| maxheight=* | * | Maximum height of a vehicle. |
| capacity=* | * | Maximum number of passengers/vehicles (use subkeys like capacity:bicycle=* for precision) |
How to map using a relation
The relation approach is more complicated and unnecessary for basic ferry routes, which can be represented by a single way , such as those which cross a river or canal.
Note that most routing clients and renderers do not currently support ferry relations, so any ferry routes mapped only with relations and not with tags on the separate ways may be unroutable and unrendered at present, so it is recommended to tag each individual way as well.
The relation approach is used for other types of transportation routes that usually span many individual ways , representing many different roads, etc. The relation can be a member of a route_master relation. See Relations/Routes.
All the tags and specifications described above for the single way are valid for a relation .
Tags
A specific tag must however be added:
| Key | Value | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| type=* | route | If you are using a relation, this should always have a 'type' tag, in this case type=route. If the route is on a single way , don't use this tag.
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| from | name | Start station |
| to | name | Destination station |
| via | name | station(s) along the way, if any |
Members of the relation
| Way/node | Role | Recurrence? | Discussion |
|---|---|---|---|
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empty | Zero or more | The ways making up the route, in order and connected. Per PTv2, the empty role should be used. These ways should have the tag route=ferry. |
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stop | Two or more | Ferry terminals (amenity=ferry_terminal). The order of the members in the relation should be identical to the order in the timetable and added in order at the beginning of the relation. These nodes should have the tags amenity=ferry_terminal + ferry=yes. They must belong to a way route=ferry member of the relation, and ideally be connected to a road network. |
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platform | Zero or more | A pier (man_made=pier) or an area for boarding. The order of the members in the relation should be identical to the order of the stops in the timetable, and added in order with the stops.. |
Rendering
Related tags
- Proposed features/Seaway – a proposal for all kinds of ports
- Harbour – describes many tags in and around a harbour/port
Examples
Large car ferry
Solar ferry for bicyclists and pedestrians
Self operated cable ferry for pedestrians as part of the regional hiking network
Possible tagging mistakes
Notes and references
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