Frequently Asked Questions

• FULL LIST OF FAQS

Travel Directions

1. Do you have motorway junctions?
2. How can I customise the route, i.e. - avoiding motorways or certain roads?
3. How do I enter the time in a valid format?
4. How do I get directions to an airport?
5. How do I plot points along a route?
6. How do I print travel directions?
7. Prefer metric measurements
8. Search tips
9. When will you have travel directions for other countries?
10. Why are the journey times unrealistic?
11. Why can't I verify my address?
12. Why does the route not direct me using motorways?
13. Why is my start/end address or postcode not recognised?
14. Why is the route inaccurate?

1. Do you have motorway junctions?

   We do not currently have motorway junction information incorporated in the directions service. We are constantly developing this facility and technology in this area is improving all the time, so this information may be available on the site in the future.

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2. How can I customise the route, i.e. - avoiding motorways or certain roads?

   There is a 'go via' option on the directions service that allows users to enter a place name or postcode and the system will incorporate this place in the route. You can also choose whether you wish to have the 'quickest' route or the 'shortest' route. However, you cannot specify the motorways or roads you wish to use for your journey. The directions service is constantly improving and in the future it may be possible to enter more specifications for your route than is currently the case.

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3. How do I enter the time in a valid format?

   The time needs to be entered in the same way that the example shows you, such as 09:00. This needs to be 24 hour clock, and please note that the punctuation is a colon and not a full stop.

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4. How do I get directions to an airport?

   We are currently looking to recognise places without official postal addresses, such as airports, in our database. In the meantime, as a short-term solution, you are more than welcome to use the following postcodes for these airports:
   
   Aberdeen - AB21 7DU
   Birmingham - B26 3QJ
   Bristol - BS48 3DY
   East Midlands - DE74 2SA
   Edinburgh - EH12 9DN
   Exeter - EX5 2BD
   Glasgow - PA3 2ST
   Leeds Bradford - LS19 7TU
   Liverpool - L24 1YD
   London City - E16 2PX
   London Gatwick North Terminal - RH6 0PJ
   London Gatwick South Terminal - RH6 0NN
   London Heathrow Terminals 1, 2 and 3 - TW6 1EW
   London Heathrow Terminal 4 - TW6 3GA
   London Heathrow Terminal 5 - TW6 2GA
   London Luton - LU2 9LR
   London Stansted - CM24 1QW
   Manchester - M90 1QX
   Newcastle - NE13 8BZ
   Southampton - SO18 2NL
   

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5. How do I plot points along a route?

   The Travel Direction service on our website will only allow you to plot two via points. It is not currently possible to plot a multi-point route.

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6. How do I print travel directions?

   You can print a route page as you would any other Internet page. Your browser will have a menu option at the top of the screen named 'File'. Click on this option and select 'Print'.
   
   If you experience problems, try selecting a 'Printer Friendly' map. Once a map has been displayed, there will be a button to the right of the map marked 'Printer Friendly'. Clicking on this button removes all the unnecessary graphics from the screen and just leaves the map image ready for printing. It also corrects all known printing issues that aren't hardware or browser orientated.

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7. Prefer metric measurements

   While we appreciate that some people would prefer to see the distance values in metric format, please note that this service is provided by external suppliers and the format is not something we would be able to change.
   
   You are more than welcome however to use the following website:
   
   http://www.theconvertersite.com.
   
   When using this website to convert from miles to kilometres, please select Statute Miles in the Convert From field.
   
   We hope that you will find the above information quite useful.

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8. Search tips

   The most effective way to use the directions service is to enter just the postcodes, or the towns. To find out a postcode, visit Royal Mail.
   
   If you enter a full address, separate the words with commas.
   
   Points of interest include tourist-related locations, e.g., Stonehenge, Alton Towers. The "Via" option enables you to enter a placename or postcode, but not a particular road, e.g., the M25.
   
   We hope that you find these travel directions helpful and easy to use. Please note, however, that the directions should be used as a guide only. The data used may not take into consideration road closures or conditions, turn restrictions, or optimal routing. No representation is made or warranty given as to the content or usability of the directions. Multimap.com and its suppliers assume no responsibility for any loss or delay resulting from use of these directions.
   
   To access our directions service, please click here or click on the Directions button at the top of any page.

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9. When will you have travel directions for other countries?

   All the countries for which we can offer directions are displayed within the drop down list. We hope to provide travel directions to more countries?in the future; however, we cannot offer definite timescales at the moment.

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10. Why are the journey times unrealistic?

    The journey times are calculated using the speed limit on each road. The total time does not take into account things such as traffic flow or road works. Therefore, the journey times may be slightly optimistic. Please remember that it is intended as a guide only.

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11. Why can't I verify my address?

    Some addresses may not verify properly. Our technical team is working on this issue and we hope it will be resolved soon. In the meantime, as a short-term solution, you can try using the postcode of the destination. If you do not have the full postcode, you may find the Royal Mail site useful here.

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12. Why does the route not direct me using motorways?

    As the directions are generated by a computer algorithm, on occasion motorways are omitted from the instructions offered. Motorways should be classed as priority roads, but currently the system does not always recognise them as such. We are due an update from our suppliers that will re-classify the road types and correct this issue shortly.

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13. Why is my start/end address or postcode not recognised?

    The most accurate way to get directions is to use a postcode to postcode search, as the postcodes indicate exact start and end points. If the way in which the address is entered differs even slightly from the way in which we have that address stored in our database, the system will not recognise it, but it should provide you with a choice of options. If the address is still not recognised, you may find the Royal Mail site useful here.

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14. Why is the route inaccurate?

    The instructions given by the directions facility should be fairly accurate; however, the system is by no means infallible. We have software that uses computer algorithms to generate the directions, and while the results are generally correct, it is likely that they will never be as effective as human planning and judgement. This is why we state on the site that the directions service is only intended as a guide.
    
    As with our map data, we source the information used in our directions service from third parties. Any feedback you provide will be passed to our data providers, and should ultimately find its way into the directions service. However, we cannot make suggested changes immediately.

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