Yes, splitting the way is the right solution. It is established practice that ways are split whenever an attribute changes - different name, different width, or just different speed limit. > in some cases, it can significantly increase the number of ways without > improving the quality of the map render. This is not relevant - [tagging for the renderer][1] is generally not a good idea (plus in this case it does not even cause problems for the renderer, because renderers know that split ways should usually be combined for rendering). If the number of lanes change, split the way. Note: While splitting, take care not to remove any data: * copy over all tags that apply to both of the new ways * make sure membership in relations is preserved Most editors should help you with this, but it cannot hurt to check. [1]: http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tagging_for_the_renderer

Yes, splitting the way is the right solution. It is established practice that ways are split whenever an attribute changes - different name, different width, or just different speed limit. > in some cases, it can significantly increase the number of ways without > improving the quality of the map render. This is not relevant - [tagging for the renderer][1] is generally not a good idea (plus in this case it does not even cause problems for the renderer, because renderers know that split ways should usually be combined for rendering). If the number of lanes change, split the way. [1]: http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Tagging_for_the_renderer