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I'm trying to use the ArcMap Standardize Address tool (http://desktop.arcgis.com/en/arcmap/latest/tools/geocoding-toolbox/standardize-addresses.htm). I'd like it to change "West" to "W" in the PreDir field as it shows in the example, but my results are actually the opposite. Addresses with either "West" or "W" both get "West" in the PreDir field.

Why is this happening and how can I get it to function as the tool describes?

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  • Can you provide some addresses that you are referring to? For example: 1402 West Center Street Orem, UT 84057. Should that be "W" or "West"? Another would be 1402 West West Street Provo, UT 84057. Which should be converted to "W" and which should stay "West"? – Jeffrey Aug 21 '17 at 18:07
  • If the input is "1402 West Center Street" or "1402 W Center Street", I would hope the tool outputs "1402 W Center St" in either case. But what I get is "1402 West Center St" for both. The West West example is atypical so I'd understand if the tool got that one wrong. – Joss Aug 22 '17 at 19:12
  • My expertise is in address standardization, but not with arcgis, so help will need to come from elsewhere on that. You should certainly be able to expect a standardization tool to be able to appropriately abbreviate predirectionals in a consistent fashion. The difficult part comes from trying to standardize an address that isn't actually valid according to authority of your choice. For example, 123 Boo Haha Street Chicago, IL. Attempting to normalize (or standardize) the address can be a best guess only if there is not additional validation against an address authority, like the USPS. – Jeffrey Aug 23 '17 at 21:24

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