WFS

PSGA Scotland members: Please replace references on this page to the domain wfs.viaeuropa.uk.com with wfs.publicsectormapping.gov.scot

WFS (Web Feature Service) is a method of delivering geographical features over the Internet. It is an OGC standard supported by many GIS software products and web mapping APIs.

viaEuropa supports WFS versions 1.0.0 1.1.0 and 2.0.0 (1.1.0 recommended)
viaEuropa supports WFS over both http and https
viaEuropa has a per-transaction limit of 20,000 features

To use WFS, you must use an end point to make a Get Capabilities request. This allows your software to be informed (using a language called XML) about the capabilities, features and limits of a WFS service. It also lists the map layers which are available to you. The URL for a viaEuropa WFS Get Capabilities request is as follows. You must replace {id} with a valid viaEuropa ID.

https://wfs.viaeuropa.uk.com/{id}/ows?service=WFS&version=1.1.0&request=GetCapabilities

where:
{id} is your viaEuropa ID

After processing a Get Capabilities request, your software should present a list of the map feature layers available:

APGB

  • apgb.capturedate

Details of the imagery capture dates of the current APGB imagery available via WMTS and WMS.

Ordnance Survey AddressBase

  • os.ab.plus
  • os.ab.premium

Ordnance Survey MasterMap Topography Layer

  • os.mm.topo.boundaryline
  • os.mm.topo.cartographicsymbol
  • os.mm.topo.cartographictext
  • os.mm.topo.topographicarea
  • os.mm.topo.topographicline
  • os.mm.topo.topographicpoint
  • os.mm.greenspace

The following change-only update feature layers for OS MasterMap Topography Layer are also available:

  • os.mm.topocou.boundaryline
  • os.mm.topocou.cartographicsymbol
  • os.mm.topocou.cartographictext
  • os.mm.topocou.topographicarea
  • os.mm.topocou.topographicline
  • os.mm.topocou.topographicpoint

Ordnance Survey Open Data - Boundary-Line

  • os.open.boundaryline.scotland_and_wales_const
  • os.open.boundaryline.county
  • os.open.boundaryline.county_electoral_division
  • os.open.boundaryline.district_borough_unitary
  • os.open.boundaryline.district_borough_unitary_ward
  • os.open.boundaryline.european_region
  • os.open.boundaryline.greater_london_const
  • os.open.boundaryline.high_water
  • os.open.boundaryline.parish
  • os.open.boundaryline.scotland_and_wales_region
  • os.open.boundaryline.unitary_electoral_division
  • os.open.boundaryline.westminster_const

Ordnance Survey Open Data - Greenspace

  • os.open.greenspace
  • os.open.greenspace_accesspoint

Ordnance Survey Open Data - Open Names

  • os.open.names

Be careful when adding a WFS layer to an existing map, especially for large scale features such as those from OS MasterMap Topo. If the current view is of a large area, it is likely that the per-transaction limit of 20,000 features will be reached. If you hit this limit then it is highly likely that the resulting dataset is incomplete and probably unusable! Where possible, please limit the zoom range where the WFS is called to an appropriate minimum scale. Most GIS software applications will allow you to limit the results to only those features falling within the current map view.

WFS Styling

The Ordnance Survey MasterMap Topography layers above include OS styling attributes that enable these layers to be styled using OS Topography stylesheets. These can be downloaded from the OS Github repository.

For further details on using viaEuropa WFS with popular GIS software and web mapping APIs, see the Using viaEuropa section.