UPDATE: Version 2 of the following draft was added to the Australian Tagging Guidelines on 30 Jan 2021. A short note and link to the Australian page was also added to the the international wiki highway=rest area.

The following notes provide a summary of comments on tagging roadside rest areas in Australia, based on a discussion on the OSM Australian mailing list in January 2021. Pending feedback on this draft, these notes will be incorporated into the Australian Tagging Guidelines and/or the international wiki highway=rest area.

Suggest adding a new section in the Australian Tagging Guidelines after the current section: ‘‘3.1.7 Tunnels and bridges and layers”, as follows.

Version 2: after comments received before 26 January

3.1.8 Roadside rest areas

A wide variety of rest areas are common on regional roads. Some parks on major roads in regional towns are signposted as rest areas. These parks are often managed by local councils rather than road boards and may be well used by local residents. These are best tagged using leisure=park (not highway=rest_area), name = “XXX Rest Area”. Features such as toilets and playgrounds can be added as separate features.

Roadside rest areas may be mapped using either a single node or a closed way (or area). Some small roadside stops directly adjacent to the roadway have been mapped using amenity=parking (with additional tags) rather than highway=rest_area. However, most roadside rest areas have been mapped using highway=rest_area, as described in the international wiki highway=rest area.

In larger rest areas, parking bays may be mapped separately to the broader boundaries of the rest area by mapping and tagging parking bays with amenity=parking. Alternatively, in small rest areas or where rest areas are mapped as a single node, both tags (highway=rest_area and amenity=parking) may be used on the same node.

Camping and overnight stays are not allowed in many rest areas. Where camping is permitted officially, and signposted as such, this can be shown by adding an additional node (or area) using tourism=camp_site. Again, toilets and other features can be added separately. There is no explicit way to tag rest areas where camping is not allowed. However other mappers could be advised of this condition by adding a note.

Many rest areas, or parking bays within rest areas, are dedicated for truck drivers who are legally obliged to take rests at specified intervals. Areas signposted for use by trucks only and not by other users may be tagged in one of two ways:

(1) highway=rest_area (and/or amenity=parking), access=no, hgv=designated (‘‘hgv’’ stands for heavy goods vehicle). This indicates that access is only permitted for heavy vehicles.

(2) highway=rest_area (and/or amenity=parking), capacity:car=no, capacity:hgv=32 (if the number of truck parking spots is known) or capacity:hgv=yes (if the number of track parking spots is not known).

Version 1: prior to comments

3.1.8 Roadside rest areas

A wide variety of rest areas are common on regional roads. Some parks on major roads in regional towns are signposted as rest areas. These parks are often managed by local councils rather than road boards and may be well used by local residents. These are best tagged using leisure=park (not highway=rest_area), name = “XXX Rest Area”. Features such as toilets and playgrounds can be added as separate features.

Some small roadside stops directly adjacent to the roadway have been mapped using amenity=parking (with additional tags) rather than highway=rest_area. However, most roadside rest areas are tagged as highway=rest_area, as described in the international wiki highway=rest area.

Camping and overnight stays are not allowed in many rest areas. Where camping is permitted officially, and signposted as such, this can be shown by adding an additional node (or area) using tourism=camp_site. Again, toilets and other features can be added separately.

Many rest areas, or parking bays within rest areas, are dedicated for truck drivers who are legally obliged to take rests at specified intervals. Areas signposted for use by trucks only and not by other users may be tagged in one of two ways:

(1) highway=rest_area, access=no, hgv=designated (‘‘hgv’’ stands for heavy goods vehicle). This indicates that access is only permitted for heavy vehicles.

(2) highway=rest_area, amenity=parking, capacity:car=no, capacity:hgv=32 (if the number of truck parking spots is known) or capacity:hgv=yes (if the number of track parking spots is not known).