MapRaid! Northern and Central Louisiana is scheduled to run for approximately 4 days from Saturday, March 7, 2015 through Wednesday, March 11. It is part of a wide-scale MapRaid known as MegaMapRaid.
 |
Please be sure to explore the Wiki page. Also, check back regularly in case of added materials. |
- IMAGE OF RAID AREA ##
Welcome to Louisiana!
The group will be divided into XX teams, one for each section, and two exclusive teams; one to handle PURs, the other for the Waze provided problem sheet. Each team will have their own assigned senior editor (rank 6, or 5) who will be able to edit anywhere in the Raid area, but will focus on their assigned section.
Raid Areas
The MapRaid! is being divided up by teams. You can see the ## ## with all the teams, and PUR areas drawn out ## ##.
Raid Groups
- IMAGE ##
PUR Areas
- IMAGE IF NEEDED ##
Mission
Our primary mission will be to fix the map! We want correct directionality, connectivity, and geometry on roads, especially in our cities and on our state highways. We also want to handle URs and PURs, to validate existing Places, and to verify the roads on the map.
|
Functional Classification (FC) has been largely but not fully implemented for Northern and Central Louisiana. Some road types deviate intentionally from the state DOTs classifications. If you find a road which is set to a type that is too low, upgrade it. Conversely, if you find a road which you feel is set to a type that is too high, please contact a local champ before making changes. |
Local Hosts
Important!
Please do not lower the type of any road without first consulting a Local Host. You may raise the type of a road to meet road type rules if necessary.
Please do not mass-edit. Do not perform edits which will affect large numbers of segments at once. The edit history of segments is highly valuable in the process of solving URs. Mass editing effectively mass erases this history, permanently. We ask that all necessary processes which might affect large portions of the map, or long stretches of roads, be reserved until near the end of the MapRaid. This includes the “Select entire street” function.
Anything locked at 5 or 6? Please check with a local editor before making changes. Level 5 and 6 editors: consider keeping highlights active for level 5 and 6 locks.
Close nodes. We make extensive use of the "micro-dogleg" technique, where a geometry node is carefully placed, at full zoom, directly next to a junction node, in order to set the angle to create a desired Turn/Stay/Exit prompt. Please watch for these if you move any junction node, and be sure to recreate the same angle at the new location.
Local Guidance
Functional Classification
In the United States, road types are determined by the intersection of Functional Classification (FC) and U.S. + State highway systems. You can read a detailed explanation at Road_types/USA.
The current road type rules have been mostly implemented in Northern and Central Louisiana. Some areas may have been missed; too-low road types should be raised to the correct levels for routing continuity. Conversely, do not lower a road type without consulting one of the Local Hosts. In isolated cases, we have chosen to deviate from official classifications. It is important that these remain intact. Also, remember that all unpaved roads should be set to the Dirt Road type.
If you find an area that doesn't seem to be complete, please bring it to the attention of a Local Host for review.
We observe the following minimum lock levels for Waze road types:
- LATER ###
Note that these are minimums and, for protection, certain segments may be at higher lock levels. If you find a road locked to a higher level than its minimum, please leave it locked no lower than that level when you have finished editing.
Place editing
Places from both editors and trusted users have become a major issue. Misspelled names, incorrect categories, missing addresses (EVERY business place should have an address!!), incorrect locations, and mismatched photos are all over the map. Use the powerful Place Browser (link below) and the information on the Place editing page to get these places corrected.
Gas Stations
All gas stations in Louisiana have already been edited and locked to 4 with parking lot roads. Do not delete parking lot roads in gas stations!!!
If you find any problems with a gas station, contact a local host.
Complex intersections
There are many complicated intersections in Los Angeles which should not be edited without consulting a local senior editor, even if the presence of URs seems to indicate problems. Some of these intersections have been carefully refined to achieve the best Waze performance, which can involve years of testing, adjustment, and experimentation. Others are locations which are currently under construction, and daily changes to the physical roads cause Wazers to report problems which will no longer exist by the time our edits could take effect. We have done our best to lock the most important of these intersections to Rank 6. When dealing with URs at these locations, please keep in mind that few, if any, additional road changes are required. Again, please consult with a Local Host before making changes.
Toll roads, HOV, etc.
There are no toll roads or HOV lanes in the Raid area.
Left turns at intersections without traffic signals
It is perfectly legal to make a left turn across a double yellow line. A double yellow line simply prohibits passing. A pair of double yellow lines, spaced apart, is considered a "barrier," and is illegal to cross.
Construction
A number of construction projects are underway in the Raid area. Some of these involve road closures. If you learn of any road closures that have not been entered on the map, contact sketch (PM [Help]) 
.
LINKS:
Louisiana DOT Traveler Information
U turns
Roads divided in fact but mapped as undivided in Waze: Enable the U turns at every intersection where they are not specifically disallowed.
Roads undivided in fact: U turns may be enabled where the road is wide enough to enable the driver of a normal automobile to safely make a U turn and where U turns are not specifically disallowed.
Roads divided in fact and in Waze (divided highways/dual carriageways): If a divided roadway has a dedicated U turn segment in between the sides of the roadway (where the segment in the median connects only to the two sides of the roadway and nothing else), name the segment "U turn". No hyphen, lowercase t. This is the rule in Louisiana.
Tiny area places at intersections
As you work the map, you may run across very small Area Places at junctions/intersections. Leave them alone. We have used these to note turn restrictions at particular intersections. We have chosen to retain them. They are drawn small enough that they do not show in the app, and we’d like to keep them.
Parking lot roads
Parking lot roads are favored in Louisiana. Add parking lots for medium-to-large malls and shopping centers, all restaurant and bank drive-thrus, and anywhere that a Place is closer to the road behind it than to the road its parking lot connects to.
UR & MP guidance
As the LA MapRaid begins, the greater Los Angeles area has over 6,000 open Update Requests (URs) and over 500 Map Problems (MPs); some of the URs are older than 300 days. Investigating and responding to these URs and MPs will be a primary objective of the MapRaid teams. Therefore, a UR Guidance page has been created to help guide teams through the maze of MPs and URs.
 |
As we have now reached 7 days from the beginning of the Raid, and URs are being closed, please double check that the UR you are closing still is not/cannot be solved. Sometimes a question has been left for verification, and a map correction delayed, pending a response/no response. Also, DO always leave a closing comment; no UR should be closed without one. |
Cameras
Speed and red light cameras may be found in Louisiana. However, speed cameras are disallowed on Interstate Highways in Louisiana.
Mapping resources
Functional classification maps
We use LaDOTD's Proposed Functional Classification for setting road types in Louisiana. Click here, then click "Interactive Online Map" for a helpful viewer; PDFs are available as well.
Highway maps
LaDOTD's Parish Maps are very helpful for verifying Louisiana's state highways and some other roads. Scroll down to the Parish Maps. This raid takes place in DOTD Districts 04, 05, 08, and 58, comprising the following parishes:
District 04: Bienville, Bossier, Caddo, Claiborne, De Soto, Red River, Webster District 05: East Carroll, Jackson, Lincoln, Madison, Morehouse, Ouachita, Richland, Union, West Carroll District 08: Avoyelles, Grant, Natchitoches, Rapides (partial), Sabine, Vernon, Winn District 58: Caldwell, Catahoula, Concordia, Franklin, La Salle, Tensas
GIS and local maps
GIS and/or local maps are available for some of the areas covered by the Raid.
- Avoyelles Parish
- Bienville Parish
- Bossier Parish
- Caddo Parish
- Caldwell Parish – not found
- Catahoula Parish
- Claiborne Parish
- Concordia Parish
- De Soto Parish
- East Carroll Parish – not found
- Franklin Parish – not found
- Grant Parish – not found
- Jackson Parish – not found
- La Salle Parish
- Lincoln Parish
- Madison Parish – not found
- Morehouse Parish – not found
- Natchitoches Parish – login required
- Ouachita Parish – not found
- Rapides Parish
- Red River Parish
- Richland Parish
- Sabine Parish
- Tensas Parish
- Union Parish – not found
- Vernon Parish – not found
- Webster Parish – login required
- West Carroll Parish – not found
- Winn Parish – not found
Communication
Raid communication will take place in the Slack channel.
In addition, there is a Waze Forum dedicated to the MapRaid here, where questions can be asked, and specific issues may be identified as the Raid progresses.
Reference links
The basics
- New editor welcome page
- Waze Map Editor
- Best Map Editing Practice
- Editing manual
- Common editing mistakes
- How to make a Permalink
- All about using the WME Chat
- Community Plugins, Extensions and Tools where you'll links and descriptions to most of the editing scripts being used. Some of these are essential to good editing, and others make the editing process much easier. WME Validator, URO+, and WME Toolbox are highly recommended.
Recommended tools for MapRaid
- The [ # # OVERLAY SCRIPT?? # # ] is available on GreasyFork to indicate the Group areas on the map as you work. You will need TamperMonkey (Chrome) or GreaseMonkey (Firefox) to install and use this.
- UR Comments - a tremendous time and labor saving tool with automation and integration with URO+, to help with working URs. Read the documentation.
- ## PLACE BROWSER?? ## - In combination with the Place Name Harmonization list, this is an invaluable tool for working on existing places. Be sure to click the About tab to get an overview of the tool.
- The WME Reference Sheet[PDF] is a printable double-sided tri-fold quick reference guide to some of the common topics used in WME.
- Validator is a script that validates a map area in Waze Map Editor, highlights issues and generates a very detailed report with wiki references and solutions.
Download links:
* For Chrome browser please download the script at Chrome Web Store * For Firefox browser please download the script at GreasyFork.org
Note: for Firefox browser you also need Greasemonkey or Tampermonkey installed.
- WME Chat Addon is a script that improves the WME chat GUI. For a list of all the features check the thread here.
Tapermonkey/Greasmonkey is required to use this script
 |
Click here to view the MapRaid! LA forum thread |
MapRaid edit lists
Spreadsheets and forms are being used to streamline management of various group efforts and track important edits. Below you can find links to use these these forms, sheets, and see the lists.
Scheduled edits
Boots on the ground
Results
MapRaid promotions
Some editors really let their bright side out, and let their community skills shine. This is even more evident in a concerted group effort with high-density editing like a MapRaid!. Editors of all ranks working closely with each other and the Champs, really lets us everyone get to know each other, and allows certain editors to be recognized for their skills and effort.
When the Champs see someone consistently editing well, interacting well with the community, and knowledgeable of the various details from the Wiki, they can issue promotions. This can be anything from the size of a managed area, to a rank increase, or even a new role.
The following editors have all earned our respect, and gratitude for a job well done. Not all received a promotion, but all were noticed and appreciated.
Teams
Future..