Orient the paper on which you are about to draw your map. The top of the paper should always be north. If the person you are advising is heading south, have your starting point near the top. If they are heading North start at the bottom and of course the same applies for eastbound or westbound directions. Your starting point is where you are, or the point from where the person will be starting off.
Draw your road to the first recognizable landmark. Your landmarks may be points of change on the road journey itself, such as a left or right turn, a set of traffic lights or a crossroads or roundabout. They may also be obvious visible references off the road, such as a gas station, a hotel, or a restaurant. At night it should be some brightly illuminated location. Draw these reference locations on the correct side of the road from the driver's point of view.
Mark each location clearly with an easy to understand symbol, for example, a hotel may be a box with an "H" in it and a gas station with a "G/S." When drawing a roundabout, put the correct number of exits, even though you are only going to continue along one of them. When crossing over bridges, mark these with parallel lines on each side of the road. When going under bridges, place the bridge symbol across the road you are on.
Estimate relative road distances. It is not necessary to draw the road to reflect that distance. You can put a forward slash in the line your are drawing that represents the road and write beside it, "For 15 miles," for example. In this way you will not run off the paper's edge before you reach your destination.
Draw off-road reference points that are close to junctions at which the driver must leave one road and take another. This will usually be a road sign such as the number of the new road or highway exit or the name of the town to which it leads. When driving in the dark through the countryside, draw symbols that indicate rises or dips in the road. Finally, mark the destination clearly and be wary of using temporary changes such as roadworks. When the time comes for the person you are advising to make the journey, they may no longer exist.
