(english translation by OpenAI/chatgpt)

RETEX: Tagging Choices for My Urban Recycling Trekking

Hesitations, discussions, collisions with other contributors, changes, hesitations… but convergence.

to be continued maybe:

• journal entry (upcoming): Existential questions about my encounter with Panoramax

At first, tagging the operator since it’s the target of the trekking.

The operator is known here as GPSEO, or GPS\&O, or Grand Paris Seine and/& Oise… Which name to choose? Likewise, I encountered clothing containers from Le Relais or Emmaüs, and again, which names should be used?

my encounter with Wikidata

Thanks to the forum, I was guided towards Wikidata, which allows assigning a unique code to a large number of resources (companies, operators, municipalities, associations, widely known people, …).

Once the resource in question is given a Wikidata code, its Wikidata entry contains important data (name, website, Wikipedia reference, revenue, …) and thus allows all Wikipedia collaborative applications to access these elements in a common way. So it is enough to reference the operator’s Wikidata code in OSM tags to identify it uniquely and stably. From this code, it’s easy to retrieve the operator’s website, its Wikipedia reference, and other useful information without having to explicitly add them as OSM tags (which would require updating OSM every time the data changes).

A single concession seems necessary: I retrieved the operator’s official name from its Wikidata entry and added it as an OSM tag for readability.

And therefore:

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:operator=GRAND PARIS SEINE ET OISE https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:operator:wikidata=Q19945071

Tags deliberately omitted because the information is evolving and can be found in the operator’s Wikidata article:

operator:wikipedia, operator:website, operator:short

And similarly:

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:operator=Emmaüs https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:operator:wikidata=Q989437

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:operator=Le Relais https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:operator:wikidata=Q16654240

ref or operator:ref

Most containers have a metal plate with a reference (or sometimes a painted marking at the base of one side, e.g., for above-ground Le Relais containers).

I hesitated between tagging this value with ref= or with operator:ref.

Again, some exchanges on the forum led me to conclude:

• any reference visible from field inspection deserves to be tagged https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:ref=xxxx.
• operator:ref can be reserved for the operator’s internal references, which may be the same but not necessarily.

one node per site or one node per container?

	I quickly encountered, as is very common, groups of containers (often with underground parts, since public works for them are mutualized). And so the hesitation:

• Mapping this as a single point for all five containers:

  • Advantages: lighter OSM database, a single node groups all accepted waste types
  • Disadvantages: lower precision, impossible to tag individual references

• Mapping five distinct points:

  • Advantages: OSM database perfectly matches the field, independent references for each container
  • Disadvantages: heavier database, probably heavier rendering too

• Mapping as an area:

  • Disadvantages: Doesn’t add much and leaves the node issue (none, one, or five?) unresolved

My choice:

• for all fixed containers: one node per container
• for wheeled bins: generally not mapped, since they are temporary or movable elements
• for fixed sites (with hard walls) hosting wheeled bins: one node for the whole site

In OSM, you’ll find both approaches.

amenity= ?

On this tag, there seems to be little difficulty. I only encountered two types:

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:amenity=recycling

which seems to me the normal choice for nearly fixed drop-off points, in container mode.

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:amenity=waste_disposal

which I sometimes encountered but seems unsuitable for containers. This tag describes large wheeled bins, mainly used for collective deposits (companies, residential buildings …). These mobile bins are rarely fixed (they are brought out for collection) and don’t seem to me relevant for mapping. I identified an exception: in some cities, the operator has built fixed enclosures (thus part of the urban landscape) where large bins are accessible for waste deposits, recyclable or not. I chose to tag these with such a node (maybe a way would have been better …).

access= ?

The general case for PAVs (drop-off points) with public access is obviously https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:access=yes or simply no access tag. I also encountered:

• PAVs installed but not yet operational (covered with a black sheet). I chose to map them (since they will soon be operational) with a tag https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:access=no and a https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:fixme=explanatory note. Maybe I could have used construction.
• PAVs reserved for residents of a residential complex. For these, I used https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:access=private and avoided adding a photo.
• PAVs usable with a badge (distributed according to local rules, probably linked to nearby housing). After discussion on the France forum, I decided on https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:access=permit.

location= ?

Containers under 1.20 m in height are all installed in underground pits with a usually metallic cover on which the visible part of the container is fixed. The tag is therefore

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:location=underground

Large containers (about 2 m tall) are usually without underground pits and therefore

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:location=overground

I sometimes hesitated because it is common for these containers to be placed on a base, often concrete but sometimes metal, and at first it was hard for me to distinguish these metallic bases from the covers of pits for semi-underground containers.

wheelchair= ?

I hesitated to use this tag because of the warnings in the Wiki (it normally requires good knowledge of wheelchair accessibility), but drop-off points often either include specific accessibility features or, on the contrary, have designs that make them unsuitable. So:

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:wheelchair=no

• for most large containers, since the deposit hatch is usually high up (to maximize volume).
• for some small containers where the height is not an obstacle but the mechanism seems unsuitable. This is the case for those with a raised foot pedal that must be stepped on to open the hatch. The engineer who designed this probably thought it would free both hands, but clearly did not think about people with lower-limb disabilities.

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:wheelchair=yes

• for large containers when a mid-height opening is explicitly provided for wheelchair users (often with a pictogram). Note: these above-ground containers usually have two sides with deposit hatches, but sometimes only one side has the mid-height hatch (space optimization). Both sides need to be checked before tagging https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:wheelchair=yes. I even saw a container placed against a bridge pier, hiding the accessible side …
• for most underground or semi-underground containers, which have hatches accessible to wheelchair users and whose pit covers are generally step-free. (Exception noted above.)

waste types accepted by a container

There is usually little doubt, reading the stickers and signage directly on the containers.

I chose:

glass containers:

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:recycling:glass_bottles=yes

clothing containers:

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:recycling:clothes=yes https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:recycling:shoes=yes https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:recycling:textiles=yes

One doubt:

• These containers (at least from the operator Le Relais) also claim to accept “bags.” But I think this means handbags or perhaps shopping bags. The tag https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:recycling:bags=yes seems far too broad (and has no wiki page…). I therefore did not use it.

household waste containers:

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:recycling:waste=yes

Some doubts:

• I had initially tagged food_waste but it seemed far too restrictive.
• Stickers on the containers also mention diapers, tableware, and small household items. I hesitated to add tags like recycling:diapers. In the end, I felt https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:recycling:waste=yes was broad enough.

recyclables containers (yellow bins in France):

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:recycling:beverage_cartons=yes https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:recycling:cans=yes https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:recycling:cardboard=yes https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:recycling:cartons=yes https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:recycling:paper=yes https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:recycling:plastic_bottles=yes

In France, packaging waste is now standardized nationwide, and this wiki page raised a few doubts for me:

• maybe I should add https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:recycling:plastic_packaging=yes;
• but I was not convinced by https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:recycling:metal_packaging=yes: no wiki page, less than 4000 uses in Taginfo. I preferred to keep https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:recycling:cans=yes.
• another possible option (used in Belgium): https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:recycling:pmd=yes

cardboard containers:

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:recycling:cardboard=yes https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:recycling:cartons=yes

multi-use wheeled bins:

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:amenity=waste_disposal https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:waste=trash

opening_hours= ?

Drop-off points are outdoors and usually have no opening/closing hours. However, most semi-underground glass containers in my area have a sticker (in red) asking to deposit only between 7:00 and 22:00, clearly for noise reasons.

So I systematically added for these:

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tag:opening_hours=Mo-Su 07:00-22:00

Note that these stickers are not always present (rarely on above-ground containers, for example) or are sometimes torn off. I chose to tag opening hours only when a visible sticker was present (field survey prevails).

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I am aware that the topics addressed here could be discussed (forum? wiki talk pages?) but I am not yet familiar enough to try those tools. For now, this journal entry should simply be seen for what it is: a feedback report.

These RETEX (feedback) entries in my journal reflect my beginner’s choices, hesitations, and questions. They only represent my own practice and are not Wiki pages. Several of these choices were discussed on the France forum, but not all. Of course, I remain open to comments and do not claim to give recommendations here.

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