Driving Ambition at National Geographic

Looking for a road map that shows the lay of the land? Try the 1998 National Geographic Road Atlas.

The National Geographic Society, which helped create the atlas this fall through its for-profit wing, National Geographic Ventures, and the Pennsylvania-based GeoSystems cartography firm, claims it’s the first major, nationwide atlas to include mountains and other topographic relief. It has a spiral binding and also brighter colors, somewhat bolder type and heavier paper than the main competition, the Rand McNally Road Atlas. Both atlases include Mexico and Canada.

There are a couple of drawbacks. The National Geographic price is $14.95, compared to $9.95 for Rand McNally. And its mileage and driving-time map has fewer cities. “That’s one of the things we need to improve on,” conceded Daniel J. Ortiz, Geographic’s director of map ventures. The map is in stores and can also be ordered; tel. (800) 550-9664.