Kdo vlastně vytváří ostrá geodata? Před očima mi naskočí postava geodeta s laserovou stanicí na stativu, nebo člověka s GPSkou pobíhajícího po poli. Ale když se vyskytnu mezi lidmi, kteří se živí úplně jinou prací v krajině, tak si uvědomím, že kolem nás vznikají obrovské zásoby prostorových dat, o jejichž přítomnosti ani jejich autoři mnohdy nevědí.

Traktorista, který celý den jezdí po poli, dávno není jen řidič. Je to aktivní sběrač geodat. Systémy přesného zemědělství, které dnes jezdí v kabinách zemědělských strojů, jsou malé GIS platformy. Terminály jako John Deere Operations Center, Trimble GFX nebo česká platforma CleverFarm pracují s prostorovými daty. Řidič může okamžitě zaznamenat bod, linii nebo plochu s přesností na centimetry, pokud má k dispozici RTK korekci. Šachta meliorační sítě uprostřed pole, vyčnívající balvan, osamocený strom, podmáčená plocha nebo sloup elektrického vedení jsou v systému záznamem s GPS souřadnicí. Software data zapamatuje, příště obsluhu varuje a podle nastavení upraví cestu a automaticky zvedne pracovní nářadí.

Formáty, ve kterých se data z traktoru ukládají, jsou převoditelné do světa otevřeného GIS. Standard ISOXML je sice trochu průmyslové esperanto, ale export do Shapefile nebo GeoJSON je u většiny platforem možný. Přesto tato data takřka nikdy neopustí uzavřené firemní systémy. Zemědělec je vnímá jako výrobní know-how. Vědět přesně, kde je pole podmáčené nebo kde leží kamenná mez pod ornicí, má pro hospodaření skutečnou hodnotu a tu nechce sdílet s konkurencí. Ale stejný zemědělec rád využívá jiné otevřené informace. Jako např. Intersucho, Agrorisk, nebo ClimRisk.

Tady leží nevyužitý potenciál. Nejde o to, aby zemědělci sdíleli celá svá datová portfolia. Jde o to, jestli by část z těchto dat, anonymizovaná a dobrovolná, nemohla najít cestu do veřejného prostoru. Sdílená poloha meliorační šachty uprostřed pole nikomu byznys neohrozí, ale jako součást veřejné mapové databáze by mohla být střípkem do mozaiky nezmapovaných odvodňovacích sítí, které v Čechách odvodňují pole a jejichž aktuální stav je stále neúplný.

Podobná situace přesahuje zemědělství do jiných sfér zájmů. V lesnictví pracují revírníci a lesní dělníci s mobilními aplikacemi, které jim umožňují zaznamenávat kůrovcová ohniska, poškozené porosty nebo průchodnost lesních cest po kalamitě. Aplikace QField, která je mobilní verzí QGIS, jim k tomu dává nástroj, který je dostatečně profesionální a přitom zvládnutelný bez geodetického vzdělání. Správci vodních toků mapují černé skládky u břehů, stav propustků a výpustí. Krajinní architekti pracují s daty existujících krajinných prvků, alejí a mokřin, které jim uchovávají podrobnosti, jež by veřejný registr po realizaci projetu nakonec ocenil.

V některých lidských činnostech se tvoří geodata s cennou přidanou hodnotou. Data, která jsou aktuálnější než státní mapový podklad a prostorově přesnější než cokoliv, co by bez přímého terénního kontaktu bylo možné zjistit ze satelitu. Mohou to být informace o místě skryté pod povrchem, pod hladinou, v éteru.

Projekt OpenInfrastructure Map, který běží na datech OpenStreetMap pod ODbL, ukazuje, jak infrastrukturní vrstva může vypadat, když ji komunita dobrovolně buduje. Zobrazuje elektrická vedení, produktovody a telekomunikační infrastrukturu po celém světě. Přesto jsou v něm mezery právě tam, kde by lokální znalost mohla chybějící data doplnit rychleji a přesněji, než dosavadní způsoby mapování.

Podobný princip funguje v navigačních systémech pro silniční dopravu. Komerční navigační platformy sbírají anonymizovaná data od řidičů a na jejich základě aktualizují mapy, opravují rychlostní limity nebo detekují nové komunikace. Je to efektivní, ale data zůstávají v proprietárních systémech. Otevřená alternativa existuje a OSM ji aktivně rozvíjí, ale k plnohodnotnému napojení profesionálních zdrojových systémů na otevřenou databázi má celý ekosystém ještě co budovat.

Termín Volunteered Geographic Information přinesl geograf Michael Goodchild z Univerzity Kalifornie v Santa Barbaře, jeden z nejvlivnějších vědců v oblasti geoinformatiky. OpenStreetMap je nejznámějším příkladem VGI, ale není jediným. iNaturalist je příkladem, jak mohou biologická pozorování amatérskými přírodovědci vytvořit vědecky hodnotnou databázi výskytu druhů, kde každý záznam má svoji polohu a čas. OpenAerialMap agreguje snímky z dronů pořízených humanitárními organizacemi a jednotlivci po celém světě a zpřístupňuje je volně jako otevřená data. Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team koordinuje dobrovolné mapování v oblastech postižených konflikty nebo přírodními katastrofami a dokázal v krátkém čase zmapovat území, která by klasický geodetický přístup zvládl za roky. Nebo nikdy.

V ČR je např. portál DIBAVOD, který provozuje Výzkumný ústav vodohospodářský T.G.M., nabízí otevřená data o vodních tocích a nádržích jako Shapefile ke stažení. ČÚZK stále výrazněji uvolňuje datové sady jako otevřená data, včetně digitálního modelu terénu s vysokým rozlišením. AOPK zpřístupňuje vrstvy ochrany přírody. Na tyto zdroje lze navazovat a doplňovat je právě tím, co státní registry nemusí nést v patrnosti: co je aktuální stav v terénu, kde jsou nezmapované objekty a kde se krajina, nebo zástavba právě proměnila.

Výzvou k realizaci dalšího něčeho takového není technologie, ale motivace a důvěra. Traktorista, který zaznamenal meliorační šachtu, zatím nemá žádný důvod ji sdílet. Klíčem by bylo vytvoření skutečně jednoduchého, bezpečného a dobrovolného propojení mezi uzavřenými profesními systémy a otevřenými mapami. Něco ve smyslu: pokud chcete, jedním kliknutím sdílíte tento bod anonymně do OSM nebo do národní otevřené databáze. Dobrovolnost a jednoduchost by musely být podmínkou, jinak to nebude fungovat.

Druhá výzva je v samotném zpracování dat. I kdybychom sbírali data dobrovolně od mapově poučených zemědělců, lesníků, správců areálů nebo jachtařů, výsledkem by byl obrovský a různorodý soubor surových záznamů. Tady vstupuje do hry strojové učení a umělá inteligence. Systémy, které dokážou automaticky identifikovat vzory v polohových datech, odfiltrovat chyby, deduplikovat záznamy a navrhnout jejich zařazení do mapové ontologie, jsou dnes reálné a jejich vývoj se rychle posouvá. Právě přechod od surových dat k čistým a importovatelným mapovým vrstvám je oblastí, kde bych rád viděl více výzkumu a kde si myslím, že česká věda a komunita OSM mají co nabídnout, že tu je příležitost k dalšímu rozvoji. Zbývá jen najít způsoby, kudy prostorová zkušenost může přijít na mapu. Integrovat a dotáhnout existující nástroje k zakreslení dat z terénu a začít stavět datový most z obou stran najednou.

Agradeço, desde já, a sua leitura… Dedico este breve artigo aos cinco anos e algumas semanas desde que comecei a editar no OpenStreetMap, e atingi mesmo 400 sessões de edições (aquando do momento de escrita). Eu pelo menos festejei um minuto :) Na minha opinião, é muito importante contribuir para a sociedade através do OSM, apesar de isto não ser a minha primeira prioridade. Claro que tenho a vontade de continuar a editar o mapa, acabando por ajudar aqueles que desfrutarem do site. Cumprimentos, e até breve.

Today I tried a variation on my regular route between Hipsburn and Warkworth. Normally I follow NCN1 there and back, but this variation takes me further inland. 

One of the highlights is this ford west of Warkworth. I've ridden through this before. But that was some years ago and at the time the river was much lower. I wasn't going to attempt it today. For a while I thought I would have to turn back, but then I realised that there's a footbridge a hundred yards or so downstream. So I used that and continued on. 

My plan would then have taken me through Guyzance and Shilbottle. However, it was turning out to be quite a bit more hilly than I'm used to. So I decided to take a shortcut through Sturton Grange.

Despite the shortcut, this looks like a route that's worth another visit. It crosses an area that I don't know well. It's an area that's worth exploring. It won't do me any harm to get more practice across landscape that is less than flat. And it's an attractive route along quiet country roads.

Map of Irish Wetlands https://wetland.maps.arcgis.com/apps/instant/sidebar/index.html?appid=0b602456f4e54b2b808b9cf8d6472cad

Cartographie des jardins de Baiao, parc public de Cormeilles en Parisis.

I’m new to this.

I did what most people probably do and added/adjusted footprints of houses in my neighborhood. Great but I soon noticed that there were choices to be made about what did or didn’t get included, what level of detail to go to, etc. and no really obvious source of guidance about that.

Which is probably just as well, because if there were masses of prescriptive guidance about every little thing a new user would get buried. Anyway. I settled on what seemed reasonable to me and fleshed out the neighborhood a bit. Fun.

I’m a private pilot, so I checked out my local airport to see how things looked there. It was really quite good in some respects, if a little out of date. But again since there’s no guidance the previous editors had just made reasonable assumptions and got on with it. I noticed a few taxiway connections were missing (I taxi along them regularly so I know they’re there!) and added them. Then realized that the previous editor had only been adding taxiways that correspond to the painted lines. Reasonable but in reality things are more joined up than that. Food for thought.

So I thought I would check out a large nearby airport. Whoever did this has made a different set of assumptions about what a reasonable level of detail is. Nothing wrong with them, just different.

Then I checked out Chicago O’Hare. Wow. Someone went to town here. Every single parking spot in the parking garage is individually mapped. That seems excessive (and dragged my machine to it’s knees as well). I’m sure some aggregation would be better. Never mind.

Checked out Newark. Much more reasonable level of detail here. But I suppose that depends on what you expect people to use it for. JFK is different again.

It seems like it would good to define use cases and detail levels for this. Not to be prescriptive, just to give editors some kind of framework to consider if it helps organize their work. The wiki does have some information but it’s more about the specifics than overall organization. I expect GIS professionals have a whole framework for this kind of thing but that would be overkill.

I’ll see if I can find anyone interested it working on this. I’m too new around here to figure out how to do that though.

O Município de Saúde receberá um novo Colégio Estadual de Tempo Integral, este que será construído no perímetro rural da cidade.

O Colégio Modelo Ernesto Carneiro Ribeiro iniciou suas atividades em Saúde em 1902 na Praça Ruy Barbosa, centro da cidade; recebendo uma nova sede no Bairro do Beco em 2008; e agora, ganhará uma nova estrutura próxima do Bairro Nova Saúde.

A estrutura será construída pelo Governo Estadual da Bahia num terreno antes pertencente à prefeitura, agora doado. Ao que se sabe, não há data prevista para o início da construção.

Demais obras no município:

• Urbanização da Praça da Vila Lelinha; (iniciado)

• Urbanização e Drenagem no Alto da Santa Cruz;

• Unidade Básica de Saúde no Bairro do Cardoso;

• Modernização do Mercado Municipal de Carnes - futuro Mini Shopping;

• Revitalização do Mercado Municipal;

Wraz z wprowadzeniem linii nocnych komunikacji miejskiej w Legnicy zamknąłem trwający kilkanaście miesięcy projekt dotyczący transportu zbiorowego w Zagłębiu Miedziowym. Kolejno zostały wprowadzone sieci komunikacji autobusowej w Polkowicach, Lubinie i Rudnej, Głogowie i Legnicy wraz z gminami ościennymi. Na obszarze podległym opracowaniu, obejmującym 2734,94 km2, mieszka ok. 400 tys. osób. Według moich szacunków był to największy powierzchniowo i ludnościowo fragment obszaru Polski, pozbawiony w OSM opracowania komunikacyjnego.

2026年04月01日に移管予定の道路 ・山梨県道513号(梁川猿橋線)…大月市猿橋町藤崎地区 ・滋賀県道116号(六地蔵草津線)…栗東市 ・滋賀県道226号(佐目敏満寺線)…犬上郡多賀町敏満寺

2026年04月01日にダイヤ改正予定のバス ・瀬戸市コミュニティバスこうはん線（経路も変更） ・瀬戸市コミュニティバス下半田川線 ・瀬戸市コミュニティバス曽野線 ・名鉄バス16系統（菱野団地-瀬戸駅前) など

For some reason, the sidewalks near main roads in Sandy have been deleted without much warning. I just have to question what is with these changes and who is responsible for removing the work of mine and others.

Hello,

I recently noticed that Someone, Which I do not know of, Has vandalised clyst vale by Removing the entire school, and replacing it with a sainsburys, ive wrote this to alert a mod to hopefully revert the changes at clyst vale

-SouthWestTrains1

This article was originally written in French here. This English version was partly translated with DeepL.com.

OpenArdenneMap is an open-source map style designed for the production of topographic maps for printing. Based on OpenStreetMap data, it is available for use with QGIS and the Mapnik/cartoCSS libraries. Here is the winter 2025–26 release.

I started working on OpenArdenneMap about nine years ago. My aim was to create a map style for producing high-quality topographic maps intended for printing, using mainly OpenStreetMap data. The main challenge is to automate map production, to limit ‘manual’ corrections as much as possible (without eliminating them entirely). Since then, the style has been used in several mapping projects: together with colleagues, I have set up a website for downloading hiking maps (hiking.osm.be) and have been able to test the deployment of a tile server on https://www.nobohan.be/webmaps/oam-tile/.

One might think that, since it allows for the production of complete topographic maps, the development of a cartographic style in itself has reached its conclusion. This is not the case. I believe that the techniques and practices involved in developing topographic styles from OpenStreetMap data, in all their diversity and complexity, are still in their infancy. Recent years have seen the advent of numerous cartographic styles for on-screen maps, as well as the emergence of virtual tiles and 3d rendering. However, simple cartographic generalisation techniques and basic principles of cartographic semantics are rarely utilised in these new map styles.

This winter, I was able to draw on the work of a master’s student in geography, Noé Monjoie, to investigate these cartographic generalisation techniques in particular using OpenStreetMap data. The aim was to test algorithms for transforming geographical data to address certain representation issues in OpenArdenneMap (and in other digital cartographic styles). Only a very small part of his work has been incorporated into this new release. I hope the rest will follow in future updates. In the meantime, here are the new features of the “Winter 2025–26” version:

Avoiding label overlap between layers

Using the QGIS overlay_intersects() function, you can prevent labels from one layer from appearing on top of another. In this case, the aim is to prevent waterway labels from appearing within bodies of water. For reasons of hydrological continuity, OpenStreetMap contributors are encouraged to ensure that waterways feeding into bodies of water cross them from both sides. As the waterway segment is often interrupted at the boundary of the body of water, this causes a conflict between the labels of the water area and the waterway. A conflict that previously often resulted in the absence of labels for the water area.

Rendering of a culvert symbol

When a stream or drain passes under a road or path, this is a culvert, which differs from a bridge that provides a wider passage for the stream. This difference between a bridge and a culvert exists in OpenStreetMap data (tags bridge=yes vs tunnel=culvert). By using the orientation of the waterway segment passing through this culvert, as well as the entry and exit points of this passage, we arrive at this rendering indicating the culverts, a rendering directly inspired by Belgian IGN maps from the 1960s to the 1980s.

Bridge symbol rendering

Using the same principle, here is a rendering of small bridges (on paths) and boardwalks (differentiated by length) that takes into account the length of the bridge.

Grouping elements with QGIS clustering

Finally, an improvement based on Noé’s work, involving the clustering of certain point symbols (in this case, a picnic table) in QGIS. This was already handled well in Mapnik, but I hadn’t yet figured out how to do it in QGIS (in reality, it’s simply a symbology option for points).

Looking ahead, as mentioned earlier, Noé’s work has opened up several possibilities for data generalisation that I hope to be able to implement. Finally, QGIS 4 is due out this year, and so the new features brought by this major new version of QGIS will inevitably help OpenArdenneMap to evolve.

One of the most memorable phases of my OpenStreetMap journey was being part of the Autumn Mapping Sprint 2025, sponsored by Youth Innovation Lab. This was a funded mapping sprint that lasted for one full month, making it both exciting and challenging at the same time.

What made this experience even more intense was that, during the very same month, I was also involved in a one-month field campaign in Dolakha district as part of my studies. Managing both at the same time was not easy.

My days were filled with fieldwork—collecting data, traveling, and completing academic responsibilities. And yet, despite the physical exhaustion, I stayed committed to mapping. Every evening, I tried to make time—sometimes small, sometimes longer—to contribute to the sprint. It required discipline, time management, and a lot of determination.

There were moments when I felt overwhelmed, but I didn’t want to give up. Being part of a funded program and representing myself among advanced mappers motivated me to keep going. I reminded myself why I started this journey and how far I had already come.

Throughout the month, I continued mapping—adding buildings, improving roads, and refining data with care. Even with a busy schedule, I managed to stay consistent and complete my contributions.

Being recognized as one of the advanced mappers during this sprint made the experience even more meaningful. It wasn’t just about mapping anymore—it was about proving to myself that I could handle challenges and still stay committed to my goals.

Looking back, this month feels like a true test of my dedication. Balancing fieldwork and mapping taught me resilience, time management, and self-belief.

This experience showed me that no matter how busy life gets, with determination and passion, I can always find a way to keep going.

Looking back at my OpenStreetMap journey, two dates will always hold a very special place in my heart—June 21 and October 14.

On June 21, I achieved something I had been working toward for a long time: I became the top mapper in KU Youth Mappers. That moment felt surreal. From the days when I was just learning how to draw my first building on the map to reaching the top position—it was a journey filled with patience, consistency, and continuous learning. Every late night of mapping, every small correction, and every effort finally felt worth it.

But the journey didn’t stop there.

On October 14, I reached another incredible milestone—I became a top mapper in UN Mappers. This achievement felt even bigger, as it connected my work to a global level. Contributing alongside mappers from around the world and being recognized among them made me realize how far I had come.

These milestones are not just about rankings or titles. They represent growth, dedication, and the impact of consistent effort. From starting out as a beginner to becoming a leading contributor in both university and international communities, my journey has transformed me—not just as a mapper, but as a learner and contributor.

Sometimes I pause and think about how it all started with simple curiosity. And now, those small steps have led to achievements I once never imagined.

This journey reminds me that with passion and persistence, even the smallest edits can lead to the biggest milestones.

In the first half of March, we ran a survey to better understand how people use OsmAnd and what they expect from it. At OsmAnd, we often talk about offline maps, route planning, and outdoor navigation. But the most important question is simpler: how do people actually use OsmAnd, and what do they need from it?

To explore that, we collected feedback across five language groups: English, German, French, Italian, and Spanish.

The results gave us a clear picture. Users value OsmAnd for its depth, flexibility, and offline capabilities — especially in situations where reliability and preparation matter. At the same time, the survey highlighted areas where the app still creates friction, particularly around usability, search, and routing confidence.

This post shares some of the main themes that appeared across all five surveys.

Who responded​

We received responses from users across five language groups:

In total, that gave us 2,488 responses.

Most respondents were already experienced OsmAnd users. In every language group, the majority had used the app for more than a year. This means the feedback mainly came from people who know the product well and use it regularly in real situations.

What users value most​

Across all languages, several themes appeared again and again.

Users consistently described OsmAnd as most valuable for:

• Offline maps while traveling
• Planning routes in advance
• Hiking and trekking
• Walking and exploring
• Cycling
• Navigation in remote or rural areas
• Recording and following GPX tracks

This confirms something important: for many people, OsmAnd is not just a general-purpose map app. It is a tool for prepared travel, outdoor activities, and offline navigation.

That was especially visible in the strongest use cases by language:

Even with those differences, one core idea was shared across all groups: users rely on OsmAnd when they want control, flexibility, and offline confidence.

What users appreciate about OsmAnd​

The survey shows that users see OsmAnd as:

• powerful
• flexible
• feature-rich
• useful in remote and offline scenarios
• well suited for outdoor and advanced navigation needs

Many users clearly trust OsmAnd in situations where mainstream navigation apps may not be enough — for example during hiking trips, travel abroad, off-road navigation, or route planning far from a stable connection.

This is one of OsmAnd’s strongest product and brand advantages.

The main friction points​

The feedback was positive overall, but one message came through very clearly:

Users value OsmAnd’s power, but many find it too complex.

This theme appeared in all five surveys.

The most common issues mentioned were:

• Interface complexity
• Too many settings or hard-to-find options
• Search quality
• Routing trust and route quality
• Map/data reliability in some cases
• Performance or stability problems for some users
• Friction in GPX and track workflows

In other words, the main challenge is not simply a lack of features.

The challenge is that the value of those features is not always easy to access.

For many users, OsmAnd feels extremely capable — but sometimes harder to learn or use than it should be.

A strong product, but with usability pressure​

One of the most encouraging findings is that overall loyalty remains strong.

Across all language groups, recommendation scores were high. Users clearly believe in the product. But that does not mean there is no risk.

Many respondents said they had at least occasionally considered using another app because of issues such as complexity, search friction, or routing behavior.

That creates an important tension:

• users respect OsmAnd
• users trust its strengths
• but some still turn to other apps for faster, simpler, or more convenient everyday tasks

This suggests that OsmAnd’s biggest opportunity is not only to add more capabilities, but to make the existing capabilities easier to use with confidence.

What users use alongside OsmAnd​

Many respondents also mentioned using other navigation apps in parallel with OsmAnd. This is not surprising — most people have multiple apps for different purposes.

The reasons were fairly consistent:

This comparison is useful because it shows that OsmAnd is not mainly competing on “how many features it has.” In many cases, it is competing on clarity, convenience, trust, and speed of everyday use.

What differs by language group​

Although the overall themes were similar, each language group had its own profile.

German-speaking users​

German-speaking respondents showed the strongest concentration around hiking, walking, cycling, and offline travel. This looks like a highly outdoor-oriented group with regular use patterns and strong engagement.

English-speaking users​

English-language responses were the broadest in profile. They combined offline travel, walking, hiking, route planning, and rural navigation, showing a wide mix of travel, outdoor, and practical navigation use cases.

French-speaking users​

French-speaking respondents stood out as strong offline and travel-oriented users, with high mentions of route planning, GPX recording, and hiking. This group reflects a power-user profile that values preparation and track-based workflows.

Italian-speaking users​

Italian-speaking users showed a distinctive mix of hiking, GPX use, route planning, and motorcycling. Compared with some other groups, motorcycling was especially visible here.

Spanish-speaking users​

Spanish-speaking respondents stood out most clearly for route planning, remote-area navigation, motorcycling, and daily car use. This group appears more road-navigation-oriented than the German or French groups, while still valuing offline and advanced use.

What all groups have in common​

Despite these differences, the common patterns are more important than the differences.

Across all five surveys, users consistently described OsmAnd as:

• a strong offline navigation tool
• especially useful for travel and outdoor scenarios
• more flexible than many mainstream alternatives
• valuable for users who want control over routes and maps

At the same time, all five groups also pointed to similar improvement areas:

• make the interface easier to understand
• make search more reliable
• improve routing trust
• reduce friction in core workflows
• keep the power, but make it easier to use

This consistency across languages is one of the strongest findings in the entire survey.

What this means for OsmAnd​

The survey confirms that OsmAnd already has a clear identity.

Users do not mainly come to OsmAnd because it is the simplest navigation app. They come because it offers something deeper:

• offline confidence
• route control
• outdoor readiness
• map flexibility
• support for advanced use cases

That is a real strength.

At the same time, the survey also shows a clear direction for improvement. Users do not want OsmAnd to become generic or stripped down. They want it to remain powerful — but to feel clearer, easier, and more trustworthy in everyday use.

That is an important distinction.

The goal is not to reduce what makes OsmAnd special.
The goal is to make that value easier to reach.

Thank you​

We are grateful to everyone who took the time to answer the survey.

Your feedback helps us better understand how OsmAnd is used in the real world — across countries, languages, and navigation styles. It also helps us see where the app already delivers strong value, and where the experience still needs work.

Across all five surveys, one message stands out:

Users trust OsmAnd for its offline power, flexibility, and outdoor capabilities. The biggest opportunity now is to preserve that depth while making the experience simpler and more intuitive.

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After

A future version of the UrbanEye3D plugin will support trees and other objects.

(Picture: Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary, Zagreb)

Note: this version is still in development, but should be relesed by the end of this month

Hello people, I’ve been Hoping to help my local town of Exeter and nearby plymouth, ive so far made houses in both sherford and torpoint, ive also named the schools of Clyst vale and Stoke hill, And im hoping to do more to help the community of OpenStreetMap

-SouthWestTrains1

Ciao a tutti. Come molti di voi già sapranno, ho aperto il voto sulla proposta OSM Civil Protection Areas, per mappare in OpenStreetMap aree di protezione civile ufficialmente designate come aree di attesa, ricovero, ammassamento soccorsi e accessi logistici di emergenza.​

In questo momento il voto è molto tirato, quindi ogni voto favorevole conta davvero. ​ Link diretto alla proposta: osm.wiki/Proposal:Civil_Protection_Areas ​

Mini guida per votare:

Fate login nella wiki OSM con il vostro account. ​

Aprite la proposta e scendete alla sezione Voting. ​

Cliccate su Edit source. ​

Aggiungete una riga con il vostro voto, seguendo il formato già usato nella pagina, per esempio I approve this proposal … –~~~~. ​

Salvate la modifica. ​ Grazie a chi riesce a leggere e votare.

Ihr wisst ja, ich hab’ einen OpenStreetMap-Fetisch :) Schon sehr lange trage ich gemeinsam mit der Schweizer OSM-Community die Idee rum, dass die ~2000 erfassten Gemeindegrenzen in OpenStreetMap besser gepflegt werden sollten.

Diese wurden vor ~14 Jahren in einem sogenannten Import in die OpenStreetMap-Datenbank eingepflegt und seither bei Gemeindefusionen Anfangs Jahr immer mal wieder gepflegt, aber nicht in toto überwacht.

Vor einiger Zeit habe ich im OSM Forum die Diskussion zur Grenzpflege begonnen, das dort angesprochene Tool der serbischen Community ist zwar sehr toll, aber der Umbau auf die Schweizerischen Gegebenheiten hat nicht befriedigend geklappt. Dies trotz der tollen Hilfe der SOSM mit einer virtuellen Maschine (mersi Datendelphin im Speziellen) auf der SOSM-Infrastruktur. Auf dieser VM lief das serbische Tool mit Anpassungen für die Schweiz, war aber nur schwer zu “bedienen”.

In einem Projekt bei der Arbeit habe ich mich etwas eingehender mit den sog. GitHub Actions beschäftigt, mit denen es möglich ist, ja nach Zustand eines GitHub-Projektes Aktionen durchzuführen, die ebenso auf einer virtuellen Infrastruktur (aber halt von Microsoft laufen). Eine solche Action baut beispielsweise aus etwas LaTeX-Code, der online liegt automatisch meinen Lebenslauf (ich hab’ keine Bewerbung offen, brauchte aber letzthin aus anderen Gründen einen Lebenslauf). Oder aus etwas Textschnipseln eine Webseite und ein PDF, das eine Pubikation ergeben wird.

Item, Programmcode im Internet etwas machen zu lassen, ist mit solchen Actions einfach, schnell iterierbar und etwas weniger komplex, als per ssh auf einem Server Python-Code laufen zu lassen.

Um die Gmeindegrenzen in OpenStreetMap zu überwachen habe ich jetzt nicht Programmiercode im Netz zum laufen gebracht, sondern diesen Programmiercode nicht selber geschrieben. Das geht mit sog. vibe coding gemacht. Zu Beginn habe ich das Large Language Model von Claude.ai mit einem Prompt gefüttert, der beschreibt, was ich machen will.

I have the boundaries of the swiss municipalities in https://data.geo.admin.ch/ch.swisstopo.swissboundaries3d/swissboundaries3d_2025-04/swissboundaries3d_2025-04_2056_5728.gpkg.zip. Help me produce a report on how well these match geographically with the boundaries mapped in OpenStreetMap, preferrably via Overpass Turbo. The boundaries in the geopackage have bfs_nummer=355, the boundaries in OSM have swisstopo:BFS_NUMMER=355 as a matching ID.

Can you query Overpass in Python, too?

Can you make this all work in a GitHub action?

Das heisst, ich habe Claude informiert, dass die Gemeindegrenzen der Schweiz in OpenStreetMap in sogenannten Relationen mit z.B. swisstopo:BFS_NUMMER"=355 für Köniz erfasst sind. Die BFS_NUMMER wird vom Bundesamt für Statistik vergeben und taucht genauso in den offiziellen Gemeindegrenzen von swisstopo, swissBOUNDARIES3D auf. Ich hätte die Abfrage der Gemeindegrenzen gerne mit Overpass turbo abgefragt, den Vergleich in Python gemacht und das Ganze per GitHub Action z.B. täglich laufen gelassen. Schon die erste Antwort von Claude lieferte Resultate, die ich dann in VS Code mit CoPilot mit vielen Prompts immer weiter verfeinert habe. Ich habe nur extrem wenig Code selbst geschrieben, praktisch Alles wurde gesteuert durch meine Eingaben maschinell erstellt, minimalste Zwischenschritte wurden von Anderen beigesteuert.

Nachem Simon Poole bemerkt hat, dass Gemeindegrenzen mit Enklaven/Löchern nicht korrekt ausgewertet werden und einigen weitern Korrekturen der Berechnungslogik hat die Schweizer OSM-Community nun ein Tool, das den Vergleich der Gemeindegrenzen von swisstopo mit den Gemeindegrenzen in OpenStreetMap bietet: http://boundaries.osm.ch

With a diversion through Newbiggin today's ride took me from Amble to Cambois and back along NCN1.

The cycle path isn't far from a number of former collieries and colliery villages. At each end are ports used for export of coal. Between Hauxley and Cresswell is a series of nature reserves created from the results of coal mining. East Chevington nature reserve was passed to Northumberland Wildlife Trust following opencast restoration. Hauxley Nature Reserve was originally part of Radcliffe open-cast mine. Druridge Pools are a former opencast coal mine. Cresswell Pond is the result of subsidence from collapsed mine works.

Cambois is a former colliery village on the north side of the River Blyth. The colliery closed in 1968. That left access to a deep-sea port, a skilled work force, a rail network and coal was still available from nearby collieries. So from 1970 aluminium ore from overseas was landed here and taken by rail to a smelter at Lynemouth. Electricity was generated at Lynemouth power station, which burnt coal from Lynemouth and Ellington Collieries.

Lynemouith Colliery closed in 1994 and Ellington Colliery in 2005. Lynemouth power station could continue to burn coal sourced from elsewhere, but from 2004 biomass was introduced into the mix, and the power station has relied entirely on biomass since 2015. However, the Lynemouth smelter was now un-economic, and it closed in 2012. Alumina is still imported, and transferred by rail to Lochaber Aluminium Smelter near Fort William on the west coast of Scotland. Lochaber is powered by a hydro-electric scheme.

Lynemouth Power-station now supplies the national grid. But the former coal yards are no longer needed. In 2021 plans were approved for a factory on the site that would manufacture batteries for electric cars. However, construction ceased in 2024 as a result of funding difficulties. In 2025 plans were approved for a datacentre on the site.

This isn't the most beautiful part of Northumberland, but a memorable experience today was watching a family of deer at Druridge Bay Country Park. Happily grazing alongside the cycle track, they were clearly aware that a couple of us were nearby, but they seemed quite relaxed. Eventually they wandered off. The track through the country park is well-used by walkers and cyclists and presumably the deer get used to seeing people. There are different ways of adapting to the area's complex industrial history.

Westhay Moor & Honeygar Farm: osm.org/#map=16/51.19215/-2.78186

Shapwick Heath Nature Reserve & RSPB Ham Wall: osm.org/#map=15/51.15109/-2.79207