diff --git a/docs/02-Scales.md b/docs/02-Scales.md
index af7812ce03b..9061ccd5996 100644
--- a/docs/02-Scales.md
+++ b/docs/02-Scales.md
@@ -310,14 +310,15 @@ The following additional configuration options are provided by the radial linear
 
 Name | Type | Default | Description
 --- | --- | --- | ---
-lineArc | Boolean | false | If true, circular arcs are used else straight lines are used. The former is used by the polar area chart and the latter by the radar chart
+labelPoints | Boolean | true | If true, angle lines and point labels are drawn.
+*gridLines*.circular | Boolean | false | if true, radial lines are circular. If false, they are straight lines connecting the the different angle line locations.
 angleLines | Object | - | See the Angle Line Options section below for details.
 pointLabels | Object | - | See the Point Label Options section below for details.
 ticks | Object | - | See the Ticks table below for options.
 
 #### Angle Line Options
 
-The following options are used to configure angled lines that radiate from the center of the chart to the point labels. They can be found in the `angleLines` sub options. Note that these options only apply if `lineArc` is false.
+The following options are used to configure angled lines that radiate from the center of the chart to the point labels. They can be found in the `angleLines` sub options. Note that these options only apply if `labelPoints` is true.
 
 Name | Type | Default | Description
 --- | --- | --- | ---
@@ -327,7 +328,7 @@ lineWidth | Number | 1 | Width of angled lines
 
 #### Point Label Options
 
-The following options are used to configure the point labels that are shown on the perimeter of the scale. They can be found in the `pointLabels` sub options. Note that these options only apply if `lineArc` is false.
+The following options are used to configure the point labels that are shown on the perimeter of the scale. They can be found in the `pointLabels` sub options. Note that these options only apply if `labelPoints` is true.
 
 Name | Type | Default | Description
 --- | --- | --- | ---
diff --git a/docs/06-Polar-Area-Chart.md b/docs/06-Polar-Area-Chart.md
index 4f2d8960d0b..d9b8f8a4d06 100644
--- a/docs/06-Polar-Area-Chart.md
+++ b/docs/06-Polar-Area-Chart.md
@@ -79,7 +79,6 @@ Name | Type | Default | Description
 startAngle | Number | -0.5 * Math.PI | Sets the starting angle for the first item in a dataset
 scale | Object | [See Scales](#scales) and [Defaults for Radial Linear Scale](#scales-radial-linear-scale) | Options for the one scale used on the chart. Use this to style the ticks, labels, and grid.
 *scale*.type | String |"radialLinear" | As defined in ["Radial Linear"](#scales-radial-linear-scale).
-*scale*.lineArc | Boolean | true | When true, lines are circular.
 *animation*.animateRotate | Boolean |true | If true, will animate the rotation of the chart.
 *animation*.animateScale | Boolean | true | If true, will animate scaling the chart.
 *legend*.*labels*.generateLabels | Function | `function(data) {} ` | Returns labels for each the legend
diff --git a/src/controllers/controller.polarArea.js b/src/controllers/controller.polarArea.js
index 78234ea59d4..02dc0ba2397 100644
--- a/src/controllers/controller.polarArea.js
+++ b/src/controllers/controller.polarArea.js
@@ -8,7 +8,10 @@ module.exports = function(Chart) {
 
 		scale: {
 			type: 'radialLinear',
-			lineArc: true, // so that lines are circular
+			labelPoints: false,
+			gridLines: {
+				circular: true
+			},
 			ticks: {
 				beginAtZero: true
 			}
diff --git a/src/scales/scale.radialLinear.js b/src/scales/scale.radialLinear.js
index b51fa698bd9..ece4a177a56 100644
--- a/src/scales/scale.radialLinear.js
+++ b/src/scales/scale.radialLinear.js
@@ -10,15 +10,21 @@ module.exports = function(Chart) {
 
 		// Boolean - Whether to animate scaling the chart from the centre
 		animate: true,
-		lineArc: false,
 		position: 'chartArea',
 
+		// Boolean - if true, include angle lines and point labels
+		labelPoints: true,
+
 		angleLines: {
 			display: true,
 			color: 'rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1)',
 			lineWidth: 1
 		},
 
+		gridLines: {
+			circular: false
+		},
+
 		// label settings
 		ticks: {
 			// Boolean - Show a backdrop to the scale label
@@ -48,7 +54,7 @@ module.exports = function(Chart) {
 	};
 
 	function getValueCount(scale) {
-		return !scale.options.lineArc ? scale.chart.data.labels.length : 0;
+		return scale.options.labelPoints ? scale.chart.data.labels.length : 0;
 	}
 
 	function getPointLabelFontOptions(scale) {
@@ -274,7 +280,7 @@ module.exports = function(Chart) {
 		ctx.strokeStyle = helpers.getValueAtIndexOrDefault(gridLineOpts.color, index - 1);
 		ctx.lineWidth = helpers.getValueAtIndexOrDefault(gridLineOpts.lineWidth, index - 1);
 
-		if (scale.options.lineArc) {
+		if (scale.options.gridLines.circular) {
 			// Draw circular arcs between the points
 			ctx.beginPath();
 			ctx.arc(scale.xCenter, scale.yCenter, radius, 0, Math.PI * 2);
@@ -365,10 +371,10 @@ module.exports = function(Chart) {
 			return +this.getRightValue(this.chart.data.datasets[datasetIndex].data[index]);
 		},
 		fit: function() {
-			if (this.options.lineArc) {
-				fit(this);
-			} else {
+			if (this.options.labelPoints) {
 				fitWithPointLabels(this);
+			} else {
+				fit(this);
 			}
 		},
 		/**
@@ -502,7 +508,7 @@ module.exports = function(Chart) {
 					}
 				});
 
-				if (!opts.lineArc) {
+				if (opts.labelPoints) {
 					drawPointLabels(me);
 				}
 			}
diff --git a/test/scale.radialLinear.tests.js b/test/scale.radialLinear.tests.js
index 69d6c167f92..395cef862b9 100644
--- a/test/scale.radialLinear.tests.js
+++ b/test/scale.radialLinear.tests.js
@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@ describe('Test the radial linear scale', function() {
 			animate: true,
 			display: true,
 			gridLines: {
+				circular: false,
 				color: 'rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1)',
 				drawBorder: true,
 				drawOnChartArea: true,
@@ -30,7 +31,7 @@ describe('Test the radial linear scale', function() {
 				borderDash: [],
 				borderDashOffset: 0.0
 			},
-			lineArc: false,
+			labelPoints: true,
 			pointLabels: {
 				fontSize: 10,
 				callback: defaultConfig.pointLabels.callback, // make this nicer, then check explicitly below