MapQuest alternative?

[Dewlanna]

I'm trying to plan a rather complex road trip and I find MapQuest less than helpful. Too many times I find that MapQuest's travel time estimates are way off (for instance, MQ says it takes 2 1/2 hours to get from here to Green Bay and I KNOW it takes just under 2 hours). So it's really hard to know if a different route that is like maybe 40 miles longer really would take 2 hours longer.

Anyone know of another on-line travel planner?

[ August 29, 2004, 10:38 PM: Message edited by: Dewlanna ]

 

[tom slick]

MSN and Yahoo both have them.
in my area there are alot of small roads that the maping site don't show, they only give ou directions to the larger main hignway then back off the larger main highway to your destination.

 

[labman]

Try http://www.mapsonus.com/ and http://maps.yahoo.com/.

 

[seotaji]

also most of the sites calulate based on traveling the speed limit.

 

[Palut]

quote:

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Originally posted by seotaji:
also most of the sites calulate based on traveling the speed limit.

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And who (besides the people who camp out in the fast lane) actually does that?

 

[Dewlanna]

quote:

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Originally posted by Palut:

quote:

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Originally posted by seotaji:
also most of the sites calulate based on traveling the speed limit.

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And who (besides the people who camp out in the fast lane) actually does that?

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Um...Me?
Well I usually do 60 in a 55 on open highway, but I rarely go over the posted 70 on the freeway. And NEVER over the posted 65 on the Indiana Toll road. I’ve never had a speeding ticket in my 30+ years of driving, I don’t need to start with one in Indiana.

But even given my penchant for driving the speed limit, the two trips that I know how long it takes ME to drive (here to Green Bay and here to Mt Pleasant) are given as taking a lot longer than they do in reality.

quote:

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Originally posted by labman:
Try http://www.mapsonus.com/ and http://maps.yahoo.com/.

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Tried'm both last night. Yahoo was a tad better than Mapquest in some ways, but Maps On Us seemed to want me to take the long way everywhere. Not sure if it was putting me on as many interstates as possible or if it was taking me past every tourist trap

I'm trying to get from the south central U.P. of Michigan to northern Indiana (near South Bend). I have a choice of going thru Michigan or thru Wisconsin and Illinois.
Going thru (or around) Chicago seems to be the shortest way in miles (420 miles more or less), taking 6 ½ to 7 ½ hours.
Going thru Michigan is longer, 525 miles, with an estimated time from Mapquest given as just over 9 hours. I know it will take me almost an hour less time go the first 300 miles (to Mt Pleasant) than Mapquest says. The estimate for the rest of the trip (all on Michigan freeways and the Indiana Toll Road) looks about right.

So I’m thinking that an hour or hour and a half more drive time is a fair exchange for avoiding the traffic around Milwaukee and Chicago.


I remember when I was in college way up at Michigan Tech in Houghton Michigan, my Dad figured out that from where he and Mom lived in Southern Michigan (near Elkhart Ind) that the milage difference was insignificant between the Chicago route and the Michigan route. But the drive time going thru Chicago could be either an hour longer or an hour shorter than going thru Michigan depending entirely on what time of day (or night) they hit Chicago.

 

[msparks]

I'm pretty partial to mappoint.com it's by msn.

the reason is you can make the maps larger, you can also just print the map (right click then hit print picture)


I use the mappoint to make cue sheets for bicycle rides in my area.