This page serves as the primary resource for editors of Vermont. Review all the sections to better understand how the guidelines for this state might deviate from the overall USA or worldwide guidelines. If you have any comments or questions about this page or state refer to the community links below.
The Mapping Resources section has been expanded with more information. Please check it out!
If you edit in Vermont, please make sure you add yourself to the table below.
Introduction
Vermont is a part of the New England region, which includes the states and/or territories of:
Before editing the maps in Vermont, be sure to fully review and understand the editing manual.
The Waze user community follows the Waze etiquette guidelines discussed in the Wiki. Be sure to familiarize yourself with these guiding principals while editing the maps and this Wiki, as well as when communicating with other Waze users.
Functional Classification
Vermont follows the Functional Classification (FC) system for both state and non-state roads. As of January 2016 all counties in Vermont have been updated to the new Functional Classification standard and the state is 100% complete.
Resources including color legend mapping the VTrans Functional Classification to Waze Road Types.
VTRANS GIS Class and Color Description
GIS Legend
The Vermont Classification and Color scheme comes from the official Functional Classification (FC) map that is published by VTRANS. The legend shows what classifications VTRANS uses and what color is assigned to each class.
VTrans to Waze Conversion Table
The numbers correspond to the FC type indicated on some VT maps. (e.g. Functional Class 7 road is a Major Collector)
For more in-depth research the following resources are available:
Vermont Parcel Viewer https://maps.vcgi.vermont.gov/ParcelViewer/
Property boundaries - should include all towns as of 2020. This information is also available with the WME GIS-L script.
This map series is inspired by the County‐Town map series last produced by VTRANS in the
1980's.
The maps feature the public roads of Vermont. The major routes (ranging from principal
arterials to minor collectors) are highlighted. Also included are the town highway numbers and
names of many of the town highways. Other features include the locations of police stations,
fire stations, and hospitals.
What makes this atlas unique in comparison to other atlas products is the County‐Town tiling
structure that ensures that at least one map sheet will contain a particular town in its entirety.
In addition to the scripts noted above there are many other scripts that can assist editors in their efforts. Please read the General installation instructions before installing scripts. Members of the editing community would be glad to assist you with the setup and configuration of scripts - please join us on our Discord server!
WME Road Type Guidance
Questions often arise regarding when to use Parking Lot Roads versus Private Roads:
Parking Lot Road Usage
Parking Lots
Apartment and condo complexes
Cemeteries
Private Road Usage
Driveways
Any road with controlled access: gated communities, businesses with gates or a guard
Campgrounds or trailer parks designed for short term guests
Never use the private road type for an unrestricted public road!
Vermont's System of Roads
State and Municipal Roads
Every state and municipal road in Vermont is assigned a class as defined by statues which is used for funding under state programs. Classes 1-3 qualify for funding while class 4 and other designations do not.
VTrans municipal highway maps only show municipally accepted roads. By convention, each road is assigned a town highway number. Many street signs still include the designation: MAIN ST TH-1
Of these roads, over 50% of the roads in Vermont are dirt - please be sure to select Unpaved where appropriate.
In addition to municipally accepted roads most towns also have private road that are not maintained by the town. These are NOT indicated on VTrans maps but ARE found on the VT E911 viewer.
Private / non-municipal roads should be assigned the Local Street type in WME.
Assigning Street Names
The Vermont E911 Viewer is the authoritative source for Waze street names
The Primary Street name should always match the Vermont E911 Viewer name including US and Vermont highways
For US and VT highways - if the VT E911 name is a normal street name then add the US-XX or VT-XX name as a secondary name and leave the secondary city name blank
Ensure streets have nodes at city / town / village boundaries in accordance with the WME Cities Overlay script
This approach will ensure that there will not be duplicate house numbers within the same city / town / village
The Vermont E911 viewer is updated in real-time and accurately reflects the names of every road in the state. Each municipality has a representative who is responsible of reporting changes to the state E911 board.
Almost everywhere in Vermont a road will have a formal street name, e.g., Main St, VT-100, US-5. There are a few places though where a road may only be known by its town highway number. If you encounter one of these you would name the street segment TH-nnn where nnn is the highway number.
Vermont Classes of Roads
Class
Description
1
Roads that carry a state highway number within a town
2
Locally designated roads that typically connect neighboring towns or have higher amounts of traffic
3
All other town highways that are maintained for year-round use by pleasure cars
4
All other town highways - often with minimal maintenance and may not be plowed in the winter
Legal Trail
Public rights of way that are not roads
Vermont Class 3 Roads
Almost always should use the Waze Local Street type
Quite often are unpaved
Many class 3 roads will transition into a class 4 road
Vermont Class 4 Roads
Vermont class 4 roads require editors to investigate the quality and purpose of the road to determine appropriate mapping. Many class 4 roads are not suitable for normal cars. Class 4 roads:
Normally receive no winter maintenance!
If mapped in WME should end at the last routable destination on the road, e.g., a HN, RPP or PP
Should not be drawn such that Waze will route traffic across them
Some class 4 roads are well maintained and are similar to class 3 roads - editors should use best judgement based on aerial views and local experience
In questionable situations always ask a state manager
Legal Trail and Other Classes
Legal Trail and other municipal classifications should not be mapped in WME. In some cases the original 2009 TIGER base map import into WME included these segments: they should be removed. The Vermont E911 Viewer and VTrans maps are good sources for verification.
Other Roads
Vermont also has numerous roads within the Green Mountain National Forest as well as numerous Vermont State and local parks and forests. While some of these have been mapped many have not. If you would like to work on editing in any of these areas please reach out to a State Manager to coordinate that activity:
Many of these roads are only open on a seasonal basis and we manually enter closures for each winter season
Careful coordination is needed to ensure that we do not route Waze traffic through forest roads
Railroad Crossings
In April 2020 Waze introduced railroad crossing (RRC) alerts. At its debut almost 400 grade crossings in Vermont were included. This feature is currently limited to editors R4 or above. If you encounter a grade crossing that has not been included and you believe it should please add it or reach out to an R4+ editor for assistance.
Approximately 52 percent (305 of the 573) track miles in Vermont are state owned
The Twin State Railroad from St Johnsbury east to New Hampshire is closed and no longer in service
The GIS-L script displays railroad crossings (US section) and identifies if a crossing is at grade or above/below street level
Community
The Waze forum is a great place to find answers to previously asked questions and also a place to ask new ones. Below are links to the forums specific to Vermont.
Discord is the communications platform we use to work together for the common goal of improving the map and mentoring editors. Discord is accessible from both a web browser and dedicated applications for your computer and mobile devices.
You can also reach out to any of the state manager or regional coordinator contacts listed below if you have additional questions.
Cities and towns
One of the most common errors when editing the maps is when an editor creates a road and does not confirm the road by setting the city and road name (or stating it has none).
https://www.vermont.gov/towns-and-Cities
The Vermont Towns and Cities lookup site will provide you more info on the town including showing you where it is located, contact information and the town's web site.
Incorporated Villages
Additionally, many incorporated towns have incorporated villages or cities within their limits. For example, a village may exist in the center of a town where there are water and sewer services and residents there are taxed separately for those services. Note:
In a few cases a town may have more than one incorporated village within its boundaries
Whilst most often the name of the town and village are the same that is not always the case:
17 incorporated villages have the same name as the town
17 incorporated villages have unique names
Unincorporated Villages
Many towns have unincorporated villages. While the names may be widely known and may even be used for USPS addressing these rarely have any delineation as to where the villages start and end and therefore are of reduced value for use with Waze.
Vermont USPS Postal Addresses
Vermont has a large number of USPS city names that do not correspond to the names of Vermont's incorporated places. More importantly, in many places in Vermont USPS addresses do not align with municipal boundaries. This makes it extremely difficult to use USPS addresses in Waze without creating city smudge and duplicate address problems.
WME Primary City Name
For all segments in Vermont the Primary City Name should be one of the 251 places or 17 unique villages that are on the list (TO BE SUPPLIED) below. These are also displayed by the WME Cities Overlay script.
WME Alternate City Name
Work is underway to consider adding one or more alternate city names for each primary name. For example:
In an incorporated village within a town, adding the parent town's name as an alternate for segments in the village
Adding a USPS name if it can be confirmed where the USPS delivery boundary is for that name
Alternate names will be added to the table below.
2019 WME Cleanup
In the spring of 2019 a number of editors participated in a project where all segments and places were updated to ensure their cities were set to one of the accepted VT city names noted above.
CDP and Other Names
Census Designated Places and other community names should not be used in the city field for map features. If you encounter these please update them to reflect the correct name for the location they are in.
Vermont Cities for WME Use
Expand the section below to see the full list of Vermont cities for use within WME. The list also includes County, Population, and Validate Vermont status and assigned editor.
Vermont currently observes the following Standardized Name nomenclature for Numbered Routes:
Road Type
Standardized Name
Freeway
I-###
US Highway
US-###
State Highway
VT-###
Town Highway
TH-###
State Highway numbering includes alternate state roads (e.g. VT-67A).
State Highway Signage
Most state highways are maintained by VTrans. However, some state highways in the centers of municipalities are maintained by local governments (class 1 town highways). VTrans maps indicate where state and local maintenance begin and end and signage may differ on municipally maintained segments. Map editors should treat both types the same.
Vermont State Route signage (VTrans maintained)
Vermont State Route signage (locally maintained)
Road Elevations
These are the general guidelines for elevation in Vermont.
All segments by default should have an elevation of ground including railroad segments
Only segments that cannot see the sky should have negative elevation (i.e., tunnels)
Only set elevation as high as necessary
Elevation of overlapping segments should be set relative to each other, with the lowest segment as ground (unless a tunnel)
More complicated junctions may need other considerations - please reach out to a state manager for assistance
If you use the Bridge tool to join segments, be aware that it raises the elevation of the joined segment: lower the joined segment as appropriate
Review the Wiki guidelines for non-drivable roads to ensure compliance with the general guidelines.
Alleys
Alleys should always be mapped if they have a name.
Alleys should always be mapped if they are the sole access to a home or business.
Alleys should always be set to "Private" (Northeast regional standard)
Alleys are normally mapped if they are acknowledged by the municipality.
If an alley does not meet the above criteria, mapping is optional. Leave the name field blank.
Non-Drivable Roads
Walking Trails, Pedestrian Boardwalks and Stairways generally should not be mapped. Exceptions should be approved by a State Manager.
It is permitted to map Railroads and the Railroad type can be junctioned with drivable roads when they are at grade crossings.
Closures
When managing a section of roadway under construction or being closed for a major event, follow the Wiki guidelines on construction zones and Real time closures.
The Federal Highway Administration keeps a website indexing all states that can provide highway and construction project information. Go to the page, find your state, and check the links for the desired information.
Places
Vermont follows the USA standard for Places. Do not deviate from the guidelines without first obtaining consensus to do so via the state forum linked on this page.
The New England Region follows the USA standard for Update Requests (URs) as outlined here. The New England states have the following ASAP/4/7 day life cycle goal for handling URs as documented in the New England Update Request Resolution Policy.
Cameras
Not every camera-looking device at an intersection is a speed or red light camera. Generally speaking:
a speed camera takes a photograph of a vehicle when it passes by the camera at too high a speed.
a red light camera takes a photograph of a vehicle that enters an intersection after the light is red. In some areas, it takes the photograph when a vehicle is not clear of the intersection some period after the light turns red.
When adding a camera, be sure to review the camera placement recommendations.
Laws regarding speed and red light cameras vary between the states and territories, so be sure to understand the details of camera legality in Vermont.
Based on information researched at the time this page was created, red light and speed cameras are illegal statewide in Vermont.
No other camera types should be mapped in Waze.
To do list
Many states and territories keep an active list of pending or closed actions that need to be done in the state by the editors. All editors are welcome to contribute to the list of activities.
This state does not currently have an active "to do" list at this time. Check in the Vermont section of the Waze forums to discuss creating one.
Area Managers
The table below identifies the editors also designated as Area Managers or higher who are editing in Vermont. If you have any questions, please consider contacting them directly as needed. If you are an Area Manager that covers Vermont, or a USA Country Manager that does a lot of work in Vermont, please add yourself to this list (alphabetical by username) in the correct rank section.
The editor who also serves as the Regional Coordinator for Vermont is automatically listed at the top of the table. That editor may not be highly active in this state and therefore may not be listed separately in the table.
Vermont — Area, State, Country Managers, and Regional Coordinators
The following editors are also editing in the state and may be working towards an Area Manager position. Feel free to contact them for assistance in their respective areas.
