open access

English

Noun

open access (uncountable)

1. A set of principles and practices through which research outputs are distributed online, free of access charges or other barriers.

   Synonym: (initialism) OA

   • 1944 May and June, Arthur B. Longbottom, “The Derby Railway Institute”, in Railway Magazine, page 149:

     The amenities of the institute include a well-arranged open-access library of 18,000 volumes, and a small but valuable reference library of railway literature; the present writer is Librarian.

2. Access to infrastructure, such as railways.
   • 2023 July 26, Ben Jones, “EU open access growth offers pointers for UK hopefuls”, in RAIL, number 988, pages 32–33:

     Dominguez-González explained: "The Spanish market is no longer a monopolistic one, and there is great interest among both the existing open access operators and potential future ones in providing services on other lines."

See also

• unpaywalled