User:Mangoe/Railroad line and station articles
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This is a set of proposed guidelines for the content of articles about railway and subway (heavy rail) stations.
They are intended to avoid the creation of articles containing little information, where that information could better be presented in the context of existing articles.
They are not a standard of notability or a set of criteria for the deletion of existing articles.
Contents |
[edit] Proposed guidelines
The following guidelines are proposed for articles on rail lines and railway stations:
[edit] Wikipedia is not a timetable
Articles should not simply replicate information from published timetables, nor should they repeat information (such as train times or service hours) which is subject to frequent change. Distinguish between stating, for example, that a station is served by a certain number of trains per hour, and specifying the times of those trains. The former is information about the significance of the station; the latter is timetable information.
[edit] Wikipedia is not a travel guide
Articles on stations should include information about their facilities and amenities, but this does not mean providing a listing of every ordinary or mundane facility. It is not notable to tell us that a station has toilets, but it may be to tell us that the station had/s Motorail facilities. If the station has a shopping centre attached, tell us this; there is no need to specify the shops.
[edit] Stations are in places and on lines
Articles about stations should be linked to articles about the places they are in (or serve) and the lines or systems they are part of. Where there is no article about a station, information can be presented in the article about the place and/or in the article about the relevant train line or company. Such articles should be linked, and, where possible, linked to the relevant section of the article.
[edit] Stations are more than just places trains stop
An article on a station should include information on any buildings, public art, or associated infrastructure. Ideally, there should be relevant images to illustrate these, and aspects of architectural notability should be included (e.g. the architect, listing on historic registers, unusual elements, etc.).
[edit] Use redirects
A redirect to a section of an article about a place (or about a train line or system) which presents information about a specific station may be more appropriate than an article about that station.
[edit] Include maps and diagrams
Articles on train systems and lines should include maps and diagrams. The former show the geography of a system or line; the latter indicate the relationship of different lines or stations.
- One problem: A map of a train/trolley/subway/bus system which was found on the website of the transit system is a presumed copyrighted image, and adding it to Wikipedia would appear to be a copyvio, unless the owner of the map (the transit authority, municipality, government) grants an appropriate license. I have not seen any principle that transit maps are public domain, when the transit company has hired someone to draw the map. The information is inherently public domain, but a map or diagram inherently is not. If, on the otherhand, a railfan draws a map, or creates a map with a computer graphics program, he could grant an appropriate license to Wikipedia. Then you have two problems: when a stop is added/removed, or the "Orange Line" is split into a "White Line" and a "Red Line," how does this change get done to the Wikipedia map in a timely fashion? And the map or diagram is original research. There is merit in simply linking to the transit authority's own website to provide the most up-to-date map. Of course, I can envision a system so messed up in failed states (Mogadishu Bus lines, Baghdad trolley system, train lines hit by tsunami) that the official version includes routes no longer run or stops that were blown up and abandoned, and a Wikipedia version might be more accurate than the official one. But in that case, the "truth" would be original research, unless it was cited to a verifiable and reliable source, something better than a railfan blog. Edison 20:12, 19 January 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Use tables to summarize lines
Where only basic information about related stations exist, considering presenting it as a table within a relevant article, rather than creating articles for each station.
[edit] Don't repeat information unnecessarily
If information is presented in an article on a line, it does not necessarily need to be repeated in an article about a station (or vice versa). Consider whether the information is appropriate to the station in particular, or the line in general, and place it accordingly. Links between articles should allow a reader to obtain all of the information.
