OpenRailwayMap

Open railway mapping software project From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

OpenRailwayMap

OpenRailwayMap (ORM) is an online collaborative mapping project developing a worldwide railway map using technology based on the OpenStreetMap project. The project is part of the OpenStreetMap database, and acts as a renderer for the existing OpenStreetMap database to include additional information for railroad lines worldwide.[2] The project was launched in 2013.[3]

Quick Facts Type of site, Owner ...
OpenRailwayMap
Thumb
OpenRailwayMap section of northeastern US and southeastern Canada
Type of site
Collaborative mapping
OwnerCommunity-owned
ProductsGeographic data
URLwww.openrailwaymap.org
CommercialNo
RegistrationRequired for contributors, not required for viewing
Launched2013; 12 years ago (2013)[1]
Current statusActive
Content license
Various
Close

History

The project was started in 2011.[4] The OpenRailwayMap website was launched in mid 2013.[3] The map originally supported both raster tiles and vector tiles, but support for the latter was dropped in 2017 due to poor performance.[5] A fork of OpenRailwayMap with a more modern vector tile implementation was announced in 2025.[6]

Contents

OpenRailwayMap contains data for railway line positions, as well as the following information about them: track type (i.e. bridge, tunnel, regular line); track line type and current use (i.e. main, branch, yard; construction, disused, abandoned); max rail speeds; train protection; track electrification and track voltage if applicable; and track gauge.[7]

Applications

Some of the uses for OpenRailwayMap are as follows: scientific models/simulations, data for model train enthusiasts, track information for trainspotters, and routing/public transport. [4][8]

As well as the project website there is also a mobile app available for Android devices.[9]

API

OpenRailwayMap has a public and free (albeit limited-use) API. It is designed for small-scale applications. Users can query for information such as rail locations and data related to the rail.[10][11]

Contributing

Thumb
JOSM editor

OpenRailwayMap allows anyone to contribute in many ways, such as:

  • Creating data using photography or GPS trackers and sending it to experienced project editors
  • Using the JOSM desktop editing tool to expand the database (Registration required with a verified email address, no registration required to view data)
  • Contributing to the project's open source code

Internationalization

OpenRailwayMap is available to users in around 22 languages.[4]

References

Loading related searches...

Wikiwand - on

Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.