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Proposal 1 (item before meeting14 Apr 2026 )

Short Summary Answer

GERS is a Global Entity Referencing System that assigns stable, long‑lived identifiers to real‑world transportation entities such as road segments. It enables consistent matching and integration of geospatial data across different digital maps and versions, reduces fragmentation caused by map updates, and supports interoperable data layering across systems and providers. GERS is developed and governed within the Overture Maps Foundation, where it is used to provide stable entity identifiers for Overture’s open transportation datasets. At the same time, GERS is designed to be map‑agnostic and reusable beyond Overture: the identifiers can be associated with equivalent entities in other digital maps, allowing datasets referenced via GERS to be exchanged, compared, or integrated across different map ecosystems.

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• Map Dependency: GERS is map‑agnostic but requires digital map data to construct and maintain entity definitions.
• Segmentation Rules: Decision‑point‑based segmentation is critical for stability.
• Attribute Modeling: Best results are achieved when attribute changes use linear referencing rather than geometry splitting.
• Governance: Long‑term stability depends on consistent application of modeling rules.

Decision Guide

Implementation Notes

• GERS complements, rather than replaces, dynamic location referencing methods such as OpenLR.
• GERS is best used as a foundational reference layer for storing and integrating geospatial data.
• External datasets should be matched to GERS IDs using dedicated matching tools.
• Attribute changes should be modeled using linear referencing where possible.

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• Home - Overture Maps Foundation

• GERS - Global Entity Reference System | Overture Maps - Overture Maps Foundation

• TomTom Global Entity Matcher (GEM)
• GERS Tutorial | Overture Maps Documentation
• Using the GERS "system" | Overture Maps Documentation

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