Road network - Great Britain: Open Roads

# Introduction

OS Open Roads is a high-level view of the road network, from motorways to country lanes in Great Britain. The links represent an approximate central alignment of the road carriageway and include roads classified by the National or Local Highway authority.

Coverage: Great Britain

Format: Vector

Scale: 1:15 000 to 1:30 000

Update Cycle: At least annually, normally every six months in April and October

Last Updated: October 2024

Release Note: [https://docs.os.uk/os-downloads/networks/os-open-roads/release-notes/october-2024](https://docs.os.uk/os-downloads/networks/os-open-roads/release-notes/october-2024)

## What's in this product?

Motorway Junctions: This is a point feature representing the generalised location of a motorway junction. It provides information on the motorway number and the junction number, for example M42 J2. Where two motorway junctions meet, for example M3 J2 and M25 J12, there will be two MotorwayJunction features, one representing each junction.

Road Links: This feature represents the generalised alignment of the road carriageway. It can represent either part or all of a road. Links end where there is a change in attribution or at a junction. Where a RoadLink crosses over another RoadLink, for example at a bridge, neither link will be split. Each end of a RoadLink's geometry is coincident with a RoadNode.

Road Nodes: This feature represents a junction, roundabout, change in attribution, or the end of a road. The geometry of a RoadNode is coincident with the end of related links.

## What is its value?

Open Roads creates value for customers in a variety of ways including:

1. Assigning information to the road network for both personal and business use. This could be to support planning decisions at a local level by assigning traffic counts or planning the distribution of EV chargers.
2. High-level analytical queries, for example, how many kilometres (kms) of road are there in Great Britain, an individual country, or a region to support regional transport planning.
3. Simple drive-time analysis, for example, what is within a 25-minute drive of any given location? This can help with the siting new services or determining the ease with which people can access existing services and what improvements need to be made.
4. Identifying community problems and reporting back to a relevant authority. The road network can enable communities to connect and grow. Lower income areas for example can benefit from better public transport links which enables them to travel and access jobs and services.

## Case Studies

Improving access to health services for the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC): https://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/customers/case-studies/model-care-home-distance

Strategic Transport Planning for Transport for West Midlands: https://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/customers/case-studies/transport-for-west-midlands