Naming roads and cities

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This page is aimed at all editors, including beginners.

This page summarises the rules for naming streets, roads and cities when editing in Switzerland. The Swiss reference always takes precedence over the guides of neighbouring countries.

The Swiss reference takes precedence

In case of doubt, missing information or a similar situation, never make a change in WME in Switzerland based on the editing rules of neighbouring countries. First consult the Swiss community sources.

Classification of road types

The Waze classification corresponds to the following types of roads in Switzerland:

Waze type	Swiss equivalent
Freeway	Motorway
Major Highway	Semi-motorway
Minor Highway	National and main road
Ramp	Motorway ramps
Primary Street	Main road (blue sign / yellow square)
Street	All other streets (white sign)
Dirt Road / 4x4	Unpaved road, forest track
Parking Lot Road	Large parking area
Private Road	Private path
Ferry	Ferry crossing

Naming principles

Use the official and complete name of the road, as it appears on the signage. Capital letters and accents are part of the official name and must be respected.

Abbreviations to avoid

Do not abbreviate road types. Write the name in full:

• "Chemin" and not "Ch."
• "Route" and not "Rte"
• "Avenue" and not "Av."

Correct case and accents

• "Rue de la Paix" (and not "rue de la paix")
• Keep the accents: é, è, à, ç

Pedestrian paths: WT vs PB

Two types exist, with different routing behaviour:

• Walking Trail (WT), routable pedestrian path: if connected to a drivable road and closest to a destination, Waze may route through this path to reach the destination
• Pedestrian Boardwalk (PB), non-routable pedestrian zone: ignored for routing, Waze guides towards the closest drivable segment regardless of its class

Naming roads

Motorways

Name them A1, A2, A3, E60, etc.

Semi-motorways

Name them A1L, A52, etc. (according to the official signage).

National roads (N1-N30)

• In built-up areas: main street name + "Alt Street/Alias" entry with the number (N1, N2...)
• Outside built-up areas: number only (N1, N2, etc.), unless the national road runs on a motorway, in which case use the street name

Numbered main roads (H1-...)

• In built-up areas: street name + alias H1, H2...
• Outside built-up areas: number only if no street name is present

On and off ramps

Name them according to the road signs. Use the > sign to indicate the direction (spoken by the voice synthesis) and / to separate cities:

Ausfahrt 43 > Niederbipp / Langenthal
A2 > Basel
Sortie 14 > Berne-Nord

Interchanges (Kreuze)

Interchanges and motorway junctions must be given a landmark in the WME, named with the number and the name of the interchange:

17 Frick
8 Liestal

Bilingual names

For a road with a name in two languages, enter the second name via the alternative name field ("Add a different name"). The primary name remains the road's main official name.

Railways

Railways never bear a city name or a street name. Leave the name field empty (or put the name of the company there, without a city, see Map legend).

Naming cities and villages

Use only the names appearing in the official list of Swiss localities. Only places with their own postal code (NPA) should be entered.

Important rules:

• No "terra nullius": all streets must have a City field filled in (except motorways, ramps and slip roads)
• Some large cities have several NPAs and are divided into districts (Lausanne, Lucerne, Zurich, etc.)
• A given name must exist only once: check the list before creating a new entry

Important

Street names must be spelled without abbreviation and with the correct capital letters. Example: "Chemin de la Paix" and not "Ch. de la Paix" nor "chemin de la paix".

Fahrspuren / Traffic lanes

• Motorways: as a general rule, two lanes (simplifies the mapping of ramps)
• Other roads: split into two directions only if the physical separation is ≥ 5 metres or if special markings justify it

Road signs: reminder

Sign	Segment type
Blue or yellow square	Primary street
White	Street
Green	Motorway / Semi-motorway

French rules, not Swiss

The French naming guide contains conventions that do not apply in Switzerland. Do not transpose them as they are:

French rules, not Swiss

The following items belong to the France guide and do not apply in Switzerland:

• The French road nomenclature (motorways A, national roads N, departmental roads D, communal roads C): Switzerland uses its own classifications (motorways A, national roads N1 to N30, etc.).
• The formats specific to French ring roads and bypasses (for example "A86 - Intérieure").
• The European numbering format specific to the French network (for example "E72").
• The French format for motorway exits and entrances ("Sortie 18: Valensole", "A6a: Paris"): in Switzerland, the ">" and "/" signs are used (see above).

What remains valid in Switzerland from this guide: the principle of the official and complete name based on the signage, respect for capital letters, accents and hyphens, and the prohibition of common abbreviations.

Official references

• List of Swiss motorways (Wikipedia)
• List of semi-motorways (Wikipedia)
• List of national roads (Wikipedia)
• List of numbered main roads (Wikipedia)

Sources

• How to name roads and cities in Switzerland: https://www.waze.com/discuss/t/comment-nommer-les-routes-et-les-villes-en-suisse/377240
• Information in French: https://www.waze.com/discuss/t/informations-en-francais/377254
• Editing rules in French-speaking Switzerland: https://www.waze.com/discuss/t/regles-dedition-en-suisse-romande/377277
• Naming segments, streets, roads (France, to be adapted): https://www.waze.com/discuss/t/nommage-des-segments-des-rues-des-routes/375658