This page is a work in progress. There may be some errors.
Please refer to the Main Page for national guidance.
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Local Editors
| Editor | Primary Area Managed | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| restless_in_nb | New Brunswick | Rank 6 Local Champ for Atlantic Canada |
| ryanaye | Nova Scotia | Rank 4 Provincial Manager |
| PragmaticPossibilities | Halifax | Rank 3 Area Manager |
Road Naming
Highway Naming
For collector highways, trunk highways, and controlled access freeways we use the Hwy abbreviation followed by the number format, e.g. Hwy 1, Hwy 215, Hwy 102 (H is capitalized, the 'wy' in lower case, followed by a number).
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Freeway: For undivided sections of the freeway, simply stick to Hwy #. For divided sections of highway, we shall add the directional suffix e.g., Hwy # (102) S, Hwy # (104) E. All freeways in the province follow what is known as the 100-series naming format. If you know the local name for a freeway, feel free to add it in the alt. name section e.g., Miners Memorial Highway. The local name will be displayed on signage.
Trunk Highway: The trunk highway numbering format starts at 1 all the way to 66. Please name these as Hwy #. Often, these highways may be replaced by a primary name if it runs through a town or city. Use the local primary name, and then add Hwy # as an alt name. Scenic routes will often follow these highways. We recommend adding that name as an alt. name if there is an applicable shield in the WME e.g., Lighthouse Rte, Sunrise Trail.
Collector Highway: The collector highway numbering format starts at 201 all the way to 395. These are highways that connect to either a trunk highway, another collector highway, or a freeway. Please name these as Hwy #. Often, these highways may be replaced by a primary name if it runs through a town or city. Use the local primary name, and add Hwy # as an alt name. Scenic routes will often follow these highways. We recommend adding that name as an alt. name if there is an applicable shield in the WME e.g., Cabot Trail.
Functional Classification
Rural Highways
Freeway (FWY) - 100-series highways
Freeway
The vast majority of 100-series highways should be marked as the Freeway (FWY) road type as they are controlled-access freeways.
There are some small sections that are not controlled access, these can be marked as a Major Highway (MH) road type with the routing road type set as ‘one type higher’ so it will be treated as Freeway for routing purposes. Examples of this can be seen on Highway 103 on the South Shore, and Highway 101 on the Yarmouth and Acadian Shore where there are houses and businesses located near the roadway.
Major Highway (MH) - Trunk highways
Major Highway
Suitable for all trunk highways, e.g, Hwy 1, 2, 3, 12, 14
Minor Highway (mH) - Collector highways
Minor Highway
Suitable for all 200 and 300-series collector highways, e.g, Hwy 215, 333, 376
Roads in Cities
If a trunk or collector highway runs through the city we should follow the above for functional classification unless one of the local government sources specifies differently. You can find these sources listed on the NS Map Resources sheet. Inquire with ryanaye or one of the Canadian Champs for access.
Primary Street (PS) - Collector roads
Primary Street
Suitable for collector roads through neighbourhoods and thoroughfares that are not arterial roads.
Locking Standard
Nova Scotia has slightly different locking standards varying from the national guidance.
If the lock is higher than the standard, there may be a reason why. This can be because extra protection is needed because of the way it is set up. Inquire with the Local Champ(s) or local high-ranked editors before adjusting lock levels. See (link above)
| Segment Type | Minimum Locks |
|---|---|
| Freeway | 5 |
| Ramp | Highest rank of connected segment |
| • • • • Ferry • • • • | 5 |
  
|
3 |
| Major Highway | 4 |
| Minor Highway | 3 |
| Primary Street | 2 |
| Street | 1 |
| |-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-| Railroad |-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-| | 3 |
Acadian Communities
Some Acadian communities use French road naming. Be sure to follow all signage as seen on Google Streetview that is built into the Waze Map Editor. Do not use English suffixes e.g., Rd, St as the primary name. Create an alternative name with the English suffix as seen below.
Ferries
We primarily follow U.S. guidance on ferries.
Disclaimers:
- Canada and U.S. editors have agreed that mapping the Yarmouth, NS to Bar Harbor, ME ferry is OK, even though the total travel time is roughly 3.5 hours.
- The Argentia and Port-aux-Basque ferries are longer than two hours, however, we have mapped them simply because they are the only available route to and from Newfoundland and Labrador with a vehicle from Nova Scotia.
Turn Instructions
The turn instruction menu below is an example of how each ferry should be set up. Be sure to do this for both directions of travel.
We recommend in the TTS box to write out "towards (ferry name) • Proceed as directed"
Ferries in Nova Scotia should incorporate the use of visual instructions so drivers have advanced notice of the ferry and when the turn will be coming up. When adding the visual instructions, ensure that you are using the blue exit sign with the text ‘Ferry’.
See Figure 2 below for an example of how this looks in the app.
Sources: