Australian Place Style Guide

All Places need to comply with the Waze editing philosophy, only add places that are relevant to Waze's function as a navigation app - that is, possible destinations, or features that aid orientation. Other types of places aren't in line with the Waze map editing goal of SIMPLICITY.

If you decide you want to create a Place in the editor, the best way to ensure it doesn't need constant maintenance, is to do it right the first time. Fill in all the information you possibly can, don't just add places to the map because it's there. 

Creation Requirements

At a bare minimum, your created Place needs to have:

• Title/Name (for Chains, use Business Name, Location, like "McDonald's Silverwater")
• Relevant Category

And a best effort for the following information: (be aware some fields may not need filling in, depending on the type of Place)

• Address
  Don't include the route number of the road in the address, e.g. "1302 Princes Hwy", not "1302 A32 - Princes Hwy".
• Short, Accurate and Unbiased description
  By this we mean no opinions on a particular Place, stick to the facts or don't add Places at all.
• Entry point (this aids more in Area Place navigation to ensure the route goes to the correct street.
• Appropriate Lock Level (more on this below).
• Appropriate use of Area/Point Places
  Most Places should be a Point Place. The exceptions are water bodies, parks, relevant places that can be used at a glance to orient the driver, and Places that should be shown on the map (petrol stations). See When to use Area/Point
• Website and/or Phone (if available)
  Do NOT use Facebook, even if it's the company's official Facebook page. You must use a website that belongs directly to the business owner, not any third party hosting site. Check that the website doesn't prohibit linking without permission. Their Terms & Conditions page will usually include any restrictions. Australia Post, for example, requires a formal approval process.
• Accurate Services (some check-boxes may not apply to a certain type of place)
• Opening hours (if set, not variable)

Note

• [L2+] If possible, add an external provider. This not only assists with making sure the place is in the correct spot, it also allows us to link that place to the Google Result.

• Don't stretch Area Places so that they intersect with road segments, they should come a little bit back from the road, as this avoids problems with editing geometry of both segments & Places.

  

  Correct mapping of a Place to the actual area

Locking

At a maximum for most places lock level, not under Vandalism or any special circumstances, should be 3. See the table below for more detail.

Examples:

• Petrol station with all data filled out and complete, L3.

• Petrol station with name and minimal info, L2.

• Park in the suburbs, with no data, L1

• Park with all relevant data added and nothing left to add, L2.

• Sydney Harbour (complex geometrical shape, necessary for orientation on Waze map), L3.

Common Issues

• For your first 10 Places, you will need the changes reviewed by another editor. Once you have 10 approvals, you may create places without immediate moderation.
• External Providers can be added only by L2 or higher editors. If you try to as L1, your Place will not Save.

Table of Places

Parent	category	type	Lock Level		comments
			min	max
Car Services	-	Point	1	3	-
Car Services	Petrol Station	Area	2	3	Naming Standard: Brand + Suburb Name (Direction) If there is more than one Petrol Station of the same brand in the same area, name it with direction as well. (e.g. Caltex Cronulla Sth) These should be Area Places, and cover the entire land owned by the Petrol Station.
Car Services	Car Mechanic / Services	Point	1	2
Car Services	Car Wash	Point	1	2	If a petrol station has this facility, please add as a secondary category.
Car Services	EV Charging Station	Point	1	3	These are electric car charging points. If a petrol station is fitted with these, please add this as a secondary category.
Transportation	-	Point	1	3
Transportation	Airport	Area	3	3	Airports should be mapped carefully. This is a very highly travelled area, and directions to these need to be precise. Please only use these Places in collaboration with your local experts.
Transportation	Bus Station	Point	1	2
Transportation	Ferry Terminal	Area	2	3	Point if Private, Area if Public
Transportation	Marina / Harbour	Area	2	3	Point if Private, Area if Public
Transportation	Underground Station	Point	2	3	Since these are underground a Point place is necessary to ensure that it's not shown on the map. Appropriate Entry points must be set for these stations.
Transportation	Train Station	Area	2	3	Naming Standard: Station Name + "Train Station". (e.g. Hurstville Train Station) Area is over the entire platform.
Transportation	Bridge	Area	2	3	Use only to represent a named road bridge with local or navigational significance, preferably indicated with a signage at each approach. Bridges without names are not to be mapped.
Transportation	Tunnel	Area	1	2	We do not map Tunnels in Australia unless they are significant landmarks.
Transportation	Taxi Rank	Point	1	2	Naming Standard: Road Name + Taxi Rank (e.g. Stone Rd Taxi Rank) Use only to represent actual taxi ranks designed for use by the public.
Transportation	Junction / Interchange	Area	2	3	Use only to represent significant landmark interchange areas, such as the Sir Roden Cutler VC Interchange.
Transportation	Rest Area	Area	2	3	Naming Standard - "Rest Area" - (Route Number) Street Name (- Direction/Locality) e.g. Truck Rest Area - A1 Bruce Hwy - Granite Creek - If it's a Truck only Rest Area, name it "Truck Rest Area" + the standard naming convention.
Transportation	Carpool Spot	Point	1	2	Not active in Australia, please do not add this category.
Professional and Public	-	Point	1	3	-
Professional and Public	University / Higher Education	Area	2	3
Professional and Public	Primary / Secondary School	Area	1	3	Use full school name. Any acronyms can be places as an alternative name. (e.g. Burraneer Bay Public School, alt "BBPS"). For places such as Driving, Art, Music, Tuition Centres and Training Centres, use Professional and Public as Primary category and School as Secondary category
Professional and Public	Convention / Event Centre	Area	2	3	Area if large centre, Point if residential or smaller.
Professional and Public	Government	Point	3	3	Area if landmark, else Point.
Professional and Public	Library	Point	1	2
Professional and Public	City Hall	Point	1	2
Professional and Public	Organisation or Association	Point	1	2
Professional and Public	Prison / Detention Centre	Area	3	3
Professional and Public	Courthouse	Point	2	3
Professional and Public	Cemetery	Area	2	3	Encompass the entire zone. Within these areas, Private Roads must be used if segments are drive-able.
Professional and Public	Fire / Ambulance Station	Area	2	3
Professional and Public	Police Station	Area	2	3	Encompass the entire zone. Within these areas, Private Roads must be used if access is controlled.
Professional and Public	Military	Area	2	3	Encompass the entire zone. Within these areas, Private Roads must be used if access is controlled.
Professional and Public	Hospital / Urgent Care	Area	2	3
Professional and Public	Doctor / Medical Centre	Point	2	3
Professional and Public	Offices	Point	1	2
Professional and Public	Post Office	Point	2	3
Professional and Public	Religious Centre	Point	2	3
Professional and Public	Preschool / Early Education / Child Care	Point	1	2
Professional and Public	Factory / Industrial	Point	1	2
Professional and Public	Embassy / Consulate	Point	3	4
Professional and Public	Tourist / Visitor Information	Point	1	2
Professional and Public	Emergency Shelter / Place of Safety	Point	1	2
Professional and Public	Dump / Waste Management Centre	Point	1	3
Shopping and Services	-	Point	1	3	-
Shopping and Services	Arts & Crafts	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Bank / Financial	Point	2	3
Shopping and Services	Sporting Goods	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Bookshop	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Photography	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Car Dealership / Yard	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Fashion & Clothing	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Convenience Store	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Personal Care	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Department Store	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Pharmacy	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Electronics Store	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Flowers / Gardening	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Furniture / Home Store	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Gift Shop	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Gym / Fitness	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Swimming Pool	Point	1	2	Not to be confused with Pool (Outdoors) or Sea/Lake/Pool (see Natural Features)
Shopping and Services	Hardware Store	Point	1	2	Exception is Bunnings, they are Area Places due to being huge landmarks.
Shopping and Services	Market	Area	1	2	Area to be used for buildings dedicated as a Market. Not to be used for temporary / seasonal markets.
Shopping and Services	Supermarket	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Jewellery	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Laundry / Dry Cleaners	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Shopping Centre	Area	2	3	Used for large shopping areas, such as Westfield.
Shopping and Services	Music Shop	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Pet Shop / Veterinarian	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Toy Shop	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Travel Agency	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	ATM	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Currency Exchange	Point	1	2
Shopping and Services	Car Rental	Point	2	3	Some Car Rental Places have different drop offs instead of their collection points. Use Area Places for the Pick ups, and Point Places for their drop off sections.
Shopping and Services	Telecom	Point	1	2
Food & Drink	-	Point	1	2	To be used for liquor stores (ie Dan Murphy's, BWS, LiquorLand etc)
Food & Drink	Restaurant	Point	1	2
Food & Drink	Bakery	Point	1	2
Food & Drink	Dessert	Point	1	2
Food & Drink	Coffee Shop / Café	Point	1	2
Food & Drink	Fast Food	Point	1	2	Naming Standard: Name + Suburb. (e.g. McDonald's Riverwood)
Food & Drink	Food Court	Area	1	2
Food & Drink	Pub / Bar	Point	1	2
Food & Drink	Ice Cream	Point	1	2
Culture & Entertainment	-	Point	1	3	-
Culture & Entertainment	Art Gallery	Point	1	2
Culture & Entertainment	Casino	Point	1	2
Culture & Entertainment	Club	Point	1	2
Culture & Entertainment	Tourist Attraction / Historic Site	Point	2	3
Culture & Entertainment	Cinema	Point	1	2
Culture & Entertainment	Museum	Area	1	3	Point if smaller / regional.
Culture & Entertainment	Music Venue	Point	1	2
Culture & Entertainment	Performing Arts Venue	Point	1	2
Culture & Entertainment	Game Club	Point	1	2
Culture & Entertainment	Stadium / Arena / Function Centre	Area	2	3
Culture & Entertainment	Theme Park	Area	1	2
Culture & Entertainment	Zoo / Aquarium	Area	2	3
Culture & Entertainment	Racing Track	Area	1	2
Culture & Entertainment	Theatre	Point	1	2
Other	-	Point	1	2	-
Other	Construction Site	Area	2	2	Unless this is significant construction, this does not need to be mapped.
Lodging	-	Point	1	3	-
Lodging	Motel / Hotel	Point	1	2
Lodging	Hostel	Point	1	2
Lodging	Camping / Caravan Park	Area	1	2
Lodging	Cottage / Cabin	Point	1	2
Lodging	Bed & Breakfast	Point	1	2
Outdoors	-	Point	1	3	-
Outdoors	Park / Reserve	Area	1	2	Do not map small reserves that are less than a typical suburban house land plot. If a Park has no official name, use a combined name of the bounding streets. (e.g. if bounded by Fisher St & Dunning Rd, Park name is "Fisher Dunning Park")
Outdoors	Playground	-	-	-	We do not map playgrounds in Australia. Instead map the Parks they reside in.
Outdoors	Beach	Area	2	3	Beaches should be mapped as Areas to their fullest extent, and with a navigation point at the main entry area.
Outdoors	Sports Court	Area	1	2
Outdoors	Golf Course	Area	1	2
Outdoors	Plaza	Point	1	2
Outdoors	Promenade	Point	1	2
Outdoors	Natural Pool / Pond	Point	1	2
Outdoors	Services / Layby (Scenic Lookout / Viewpoint)	Point	2	3
Outdoors	Ski Area	Area	2	3	Do not map the mountain they reside on, only the base area.
Natural Features	-	Point	3	6	-
Natural Features	Island	Area	3	3	Islands should be used carefully. These should only be used to map actual islands, or to fix waterline issues (please leave name blank). Consult a L3 or higher before attempting this.
Natural Features	Sea / Lake	Area	3	6	These are very complex polygons, please do not lock any lower than L3.
Natural Features	River / Creek	Area	3	5	The area should encompass the body of water until it meets another River / Stream or a Sea / Lake.
Natural Features	Forest / Bush	Area	3	3	Use this only for named forests / national parks.
Natural Features	Farm	Area	3	3	Only farms that are open to public and are a tourist attraction should be mapped.
Natural Features	Canal / Ditch / Aqueduct	Area	3	3
Natural Features	Marsh / Wetlands	Area	3	3
Natural Features	Dam	Area	3	3	Do not use this unless it can be actively used to assist in navigation / view-able from the road.
Residential Place	-	Point	1	1	RPP's should only be used when fixing a navigation issue, or when adding supporting photography, to assist in residence discovery.
Car Park	-	Area	~	~	Same lock level as the Place they are parking for.

Residential Point Places

In some circumstances, House Numbers can't be used to specify a street address. A Residential Place Point [RPP] can be used to overcome that limitation. The rules for a successful RPP are:

1. The abbreviation of the street type in the RPP must match a list of accepted abbreviations, which is not directly accessible to us. Most of the standard abbreviations in the Abbreviations and Acronyms list have been found to work, except that Crescent must be abbreviated as Cres, and Avenue must be abbreviated as Ave.
2. The Street Name and City in the RPP must match those of a nearby segment. If necessary, add an alt-name to the segment to provide a match. (For example, a street address of 123 Princes Hwy, Dandenong on a segment identified as ALTNR1 - Princes Hwy would require an alt-name of Princes Hwy, Dandenong on the highway segment. Note that the City name is required, but can't be added to the alt-name if the main name for the segment is flagged as "None". To overcome this, add a City name to the main name, then add the City in the alt-name, save your changes, then flag the main City name as "None" and save again. )
3. The RPP must have an explicit entry point.

The RPP will become effective in minutes, unless there were changes in the street name that need to be incorporated in the live map.