Guidepost Direction & Destination Markers

This downloadable preset bundle extends the built-in presets for ​Tag:information=guidepost by adding a convenient way to capture detailed destinations and routes, as shown on a guidepost's directional signs. It uses the schema documented at ​Key:direction_north for simplicity.

The presets here have been tested in JOSM and Vespucci.

👉 ​Discuss these presets on the OSM Community Discourse

Installation

In JOSM: install it from the Presets → Preset Preferences... menu. It shows up as "Guidepost Direction & Destination Markers (by achadwick)" in the left-hand list. Click the arrow to transfer it to your list of installed presets, on the right.

In Vespucci: go to Preferences [cog icon] → More Settings... → Presets → Add Preset. In your web browser, copy the zipfile link (from the Presets table on this wiki), and paste it into the URL field back in Vespucci's presets manager. Enter a suitable Name too, such as "Guidepost Directions & Destinations". Then press OK, and wait for it to download. Finally, don't forget to enable the checkbox next to the new presets bundle.

Using these presets

Usage in JOSM

Once they're installed, the presets are available next to the Guidepost builtin in JOSM, under Presets → Facilities → Tourism. You can press F3 and search for them as well. The presets only appear when you have a Node object selected.

There are two preset dialogs in JOSM, and you can navigate between them:

• Guidepost Directions & Destinations
  • The basic form of the dialog
  • This lets you enter the texts of signs pointing in each compass bearing (N, NE, E, SE, S, SW, W, NW) separately.

• Guidepost Directions & Destinations (full)
  • A full version of the same dialog.
  • This allows feature symbols, route references, and route names to be captured also.

Usage in Vespucci

In Vespucci, when you're adding a new tagged Node, or editing tags on a Node, the Presets tab allows you to search for these presets by keyword. Start typing in "guidepost" or "directions", and tap the or icon when you see it in the list underneath. It'll flip to the Properties tab for the next bit.

Everything's managed under the same Properties tab in Vespucci. The basic preset fields are shown first, and the fancier :ref, :route, and :symbol tags are shown under Additional Properties if the object has any. The fancier features can be made available by selecting the icon in the icon list at the bottom while editing.

Tag documentation

• ​Key:direction_north - bearing-specific detail tags, docs linked in the dialog
• ​Tag:information=guidepost - main tag that makes an object a guidepost

Preset XML

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<presets xmlns="http://josm.openstreetmap.de/tagging-preset-1.0"
  author="achadwick"
  description="Guidepost Direction &amp; Destination Markers"
  shortdescription="Guidepost Directions &amp; Destinations"
  icon="Guidepost-16a.svg"
  version="1.5_2025-08-11"
>
  <group name="Facilities/Tourism">

    <item name="Guidepost Directions &amp; Destinations"
      preset_name_label="true"
      icon="Guidepost-16a.svg"
      type="node"
    >
      <link wiki="Key:direction_north"/>
      <space />

      <label text="Destination or route texts shown on directional guidepost markers." />
      <space />

      <key key="tourism" value="information"/>
      <key key="information" value="guidepost"/>
      <combo
        key="guide_type"
        text="Guidepost type"
        values="destination,intermediary,numbered"
        default="destination"
        display_values="Directions to named destinations,Intermediary trail mark or arrow on a route,Directions to other numbered guideposts"
        editable="false"
        icon="Guidepost-16.svg"
      />
      <space />

      <text
        text="N-bound text"
        key="direction_north"
        icon="Compass-N-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="NE-bound text"
        key="direction_northeast"
        icon="Compass-NE-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="E-bound text"
        key="direction_east"
        icon="Compass-E-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="SE-bound text"
        key="direction_southeast"
        icon="Compass-SE-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="S-bound text"
        key="direction_south"
        icon="Compass-S-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="SW-bound text"
        key="direction_southwest"
        icon="Compass-SW-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="W-bound text"
        key="direction_west"
        icon="Compass-W-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="NW-bound text"
        key="direction_northwest"
        icon="Compass-NW-16.svg"
      />
      <space />

      <label text="Use semicolons to separate multiple values." />
      <space />

      <preset_link preset_name="Guidepost"/>
      <preset_link preset_name="Guidepost Directions &amp; Destinations (full)"/>
    </item>

    <item name="Guidepost Directions &amp; Destinations (full)"
      preset_name_label="true"
      icon="Guidepost-16b.svg"
      type="node"
    >
      <link wiki="Key:direction_north"/>
      <space />

      <label text="Destination or route texts/refs/symbols shown on directional guidepost markers." />
      <space />

      <key key="tourism" value="information"/>
      <key key="information" value="guidepost"/>
      <combo
        key="guide_type"
        text="Guidepost type"
        values="destination,intermediary,numbered"
        default="destination"
        display_values="Directions to named destinations,Intermediary trail mark or arrow on a route,Directions to other numbered guideposts"
        editable="false"
        icon="Guidepost-16.svg"
      />
      <space />

      <text
        text="N-bound text"
        key="direction_north"
        icon="Compass-N-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="N-bound route ref"
        key="direction_north:ref"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="N-bound route name"
        key="direction_north:route"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="N-bound symbols"
        key="direction_north:symbol"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <space/>

      <text
        text="NE-bound text"
        key="direction_northeast"
        icon="Compass-NE-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="NE-bound route ref"
        key="direction_northeast:ref"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="NE-bound route name"
        key="direction_northeast:route"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="NE-bound symbols"
        key="direction_northeast:symbol"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <space/>

      <text
        text="E-bound text"
        key="direction_east"
        icon="Compass-E-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="E-bound route ref"
        key="direction_east:ref"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="E-bound route name"
        key="direction_east:route"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="E-bound symbols"
        key="direction_east:symbol"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <space/>

      <text
        text="SE-bound text"
        key="direction_southeast"
        icon="Compass-SE-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="SE-bound route ref"
        key="direction_southeast:ref"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="SE-bound route name"
        key="direction_southeast:route"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="SE-bound symbols"
        key="direction_southeast:symbol"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <space/>

      <text
        text="S-bound text"
        key="direction_south"
        icon="Compass-S-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="S-bound route ref"
        key="direction_south:ref"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="S-bound route name"
        key="direction_south:route"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="S-bound symbols"
        key="direction_south:symbol"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <space/>

      <text
        text="SW-bound text"
        key="direction_southwest"
        icon="Compass-SW-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="SW-bound route ref"
        key="direction_southwest:ref"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="SW-bound route name"
        key="direction_southwest:route"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="SW-bound symbols"
        key="direction_southwest:symbol"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <space />

      <text
        text="W-bound text"
        key="direction_west"
        icon="Compass-W-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="W-bound route ref"
        key="direction_west:ref"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="W-bound route name"
        key="direction_west:route"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="W-bound symbols"
        key="direction_west:symbol"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <space/>

      <text
        text="NW-bound text"
        key="direction_northwest"
        icon="Compass-NW-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="NW-bound route ref"
        key="direction_northwest:ref"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="NW-bound route name"
        key="direction_northwest:route"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <text
        text="NW-bound symbols"
        key="direction_northwest:symbol"
        icon="Blank-16.svg"
      />
      <space/>

      <label text="Use semicolons to separate multiple values." />
      <space />

      <preset_link preset_name="Guidepost"/>
      <preset_link preset_name="Guidepost Directions &amp; Destinations"/>
    </item>

  </group>
</presets>

Presets_GuidepostDirectionsAndDestinations-preset.xml, Presets_GuidepostDirectionsAndDestinations.zip