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OSM Map Data

  • Updated
If you see something incorrect as you’re planning or navigating a route -- perhaps a gravel road that you know and love is incorrectly labeled as pavement -- you have the power to become an OpenStreetMap contributor and improve the data that drives our routing abilities.

Download the Ride with GPS mobile app on iOS or Android

   

Ride with GPS uses map data from OpenStreetMap (OSM) to power the RWGPS, OSM, OSM Cycle and ESRI map styles in our route planner and navigation software. OSM is a free and collaborative project to create a detailed map of the entire world — and it is constantly evolving and improving because of a worldwide community of volunteer contributors who regularly update the map to reflect new roads, closed roads, private/public land access, surface type information and more.

 

Contribute Map Data to OSM

It’s free and simple to become a contributor to OpenStreetMap:

  1. Open OSM's website and Click Sign up to create a free account.
  2. Go to the map and type the address or coordinates of the area that you want to edit into the search box.
  3. Hit the Edit button in the top left of the screen. This will open the iD editor.
  4. Suggest your edits, and a reviewer will assess them for accuracy and add them to the routing engine.
Please note that not all edits must be certified as accurate, meaning that they must get OpenStreetMap cartographer approval before the updates are finalized in OSM. Once approved, the changes will appear in Ride with GPS maps within a week or two.

Leave a Note

If you'd rather not make edits but have suggestions, you can leave a Note to alert other users (and map editors) that a specific feature is incorrect or requires fixing. To add a note follow the steps below:
  1. Create your OSM account and log in > Click Edit to open the id Editor.
  2. Activate the OSM Notes layer by clicking the Map Data icon on the right side of the screen > check to enable OSM Notes.
  3. Click Add Note from the top of the screen.
  4. Click on the map location where you'd like the note placed > Enter your description > Save.

Make an Edit

OSM Map Features: Points, Lines and Areas

-All features (things that appear on the map) in OSM are represented by 3 different elements: Points, Lines, and Areas. Below, find a quick explanation of each:

  • Points (nodes): Points can be used to represent features like shops, restaurants or monuments. They mark a specific location and describe what’s there.
  • Areas (ways): These are used to show the boundaries of features like lakes, buildings, and residential areas.
  • Lines: These are used to represent features such as roads, railroads, and rivers. 

iD Editor Basic Info

  • Select: Left click on a feature to select it. Right-click on a feature to display the edit menu. The Edit menu will provide operations such as copy, rotate, delete, and more.

  • Select Multiple Features: Select multiple features together (for example, multiple road segments) by holding the shift button and left-clicking multiple features at once.

  • Undo & Redo: Undo and Redo buttons are great for backtracking edits. The Undo/Redo buttons are located in the upper right corner of the id Editor.

  • Save: Click Save in the upper right corner to finish your edits and submit them to OpenStreetMap. On the Save screen, you’ll be able to review your edits.

  • Upload: Before uploading your edits, you’ll be required to enter a Changeset Comment. Once you’ve done this, click Upload to submit your edits to the map for review.

Edit a Line

  • Adding: Click Line at the top of the screen. The click the line’s starting location and continue placing points (nodes) by clicking along the shape of the line.

  • Modifying: To adjust the shape of a line, click the feature to select it, then click one of the points and drag the line into your desired shape.
  • Connecting: Connections between roads will be indicated on the map by gray dots. Line endpoints will be indicated by a large white circle if it is not connected to another line. Connect one line to another by clicking and dragging a point on the line to another. 
  • Disconnecting: If you need to disconnect a road connected to another feature, right-click one of the points along the line and select the Disconnect operation.
  • Moving: To move an entire line, right-click on the line > select the Move operation. Any point connected to another line or feature will stay connected when moving the line.
  • Deleting: Deleting lines is a useful function if the entire line is incorrectly placed or if the line shown on the map simply does not exist in real life. To delete a line right-click the line > select Delete.

Update Surface Types

  1. Create your OSM account and log in > Click Edit to open the id Editor.
  2. Click on the road/path in question to see a variety of fields displayed on the left side of your screen for the highlighted feature.
  3. Click the Surface Types option and select a surface type from the dropdown menu. 
  4. Click Save > Input a Changeset comment > click Upload to submit your suggestions.

 

Updates from OSM to Ride with GPS

The edits you make to OpenStreetMap will be visible immediately after you save them. However, edits may take up to 2 weeks to appear on Ride with GPS, as it takes time for OSM data to be approved and updated in our software.

 

Need more help? 

For an interactive walk-through tutorial of editing in OSM login to your OSM account > Click Edit in the upper left corner > click the Help icon in the lower right corner > Click the link to start the Walkthrough.

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