A. to Z. London Street Atlas

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The map index contains over 300,000 entries with nearly 100,000 streets, over 200,000 postcodes, plus thousands of places of interest, hospitals and rail stations. All can be located on this high quality map within a few seconds using the search feature or by browsing the index. Paper maps are still very useful in situations with low mobile coverage, but do they still have a place in a 5G-irradiated city? The answer seems to be an emphatic YES, at least according to Londonist's facebook followers. "Use mine every day!" The Geographers' A–Z Street Atlas, commonly shortened to A–Z (pronounced "Ay to Zed"), is a title given to any one of a range of atlases of streets in the United Kingdom produced by Geographers' A–Z Map Company Limited. Its first atlas, of London, was originally compiled in the 1930s by Phyllis Pearsall. The company she founded now publishes street maps of many cities and towns in the UK. Of note, the quality of reproduction of the maps is excellent. Both old and new are crisp and clear. The book’s hardcover sleeve also has a rather nice “old parchment map” texture. Small detail we know but adds to the quality feel of the publication. John dislikes digital maps: "The apps are thoroughly inadequate. If they weren't, I would toss the paper one in the bin." He doesn't elaborate.

The Geographers' A–Z Street Atlas and the story of how Phyllis Pearsall came to write the first edition covering London were featured in a 2005 episode of Nicholas Crane's Map Man TV programme. This revealed that, on all their maps, A–Z print a non-existent trap street so that they can tell if a map has been illegally copied from theirs, a technique used by several publishers of reference works (see fictitious entry). Suddenly, large chunks of the population had free access to a zoomable, scrollable map of the capital, on a device half the size of the smallest A-Z. Better yet, inbuilt GPS furnished us with a little blob, to indicate current location. You could even get a street view and satellite view. A-Z (now owned by Collins) have kept up by releasing their own apps ( iOS/ Android), but the paper version is increasingly rare.

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We also enjoyed looking at some fairly-recent maps of London, that look very similar to the up-to-date ones, but show something that has since changed. For example, Trafalgar Square with traffic running on all four sides of it, until it was pedestrianised at the end of last century – how did we take so long to do that? The map is stored entirely on the mobile device and using the map requires no internet connection and hence is fast, ideal for iPad devices as well as iPhones and will work anywhere (even underground). A wealth of addtional information and options regarding your journey is provided & many versions come with "Live information" that enables you to Geographers' A–Z Map Company was the official supplier of atlases and maps for the 2012 Olympic Games and 2012 Paralympic Games and produced detailed maps for the Olympic Park in Stratford, as well as all the other venues that were used during the games in London and throughout the United Kingdom. They produced three special maps detailing transport information on getting to the venues and also provided information on events related to the 2012 Cultural Olympiad. In addition, A–Z provided special sections relating to the Games in their 2012 editions of their main UK-wide and local maps.

Mapping London’s favourite part of the book is the final section, looking at specific London locations – those which have radically changed since the first A to Z was produced. We particularly like the way the examples in this section are mapped – with an old A to Z map showing the former layout, immediately beside or above a brand new A to Z map to exactly the same scale. For example, the area around Battersea Power Station has comprehensively changed as these two maps show:

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What the book is not, is (just) a history of the A to Z map. Rather, it is a book about the history and geography of London, with A to Z maps used to frame the narrative. The A to Z is a bit of an institution when it comes to London maps. It, along with the Tube Map, is probably the most famous and well known London map, and certainly the most famous atlas. We’ve reviewed a historic A-Z map of London before, but not the modern one that you will find in many bookshops, newsagents and petrol stations across the city and country. So, when this book – not a map! – the A to Z History of London– arrived in Mapping London Towers, we were curious. Unless indicated to the contrary, the index shows districts and various facilities or places of interest in colour to make them easy to see., with separate listings of hospitals/healthcare facilities and railway/underground/etc, stations. All versions all include a diagram of London Transport’s Underground/Overground/DLR network. Stanford’s presentation of the individual atlases includes an image showing the extent of the coverage.

The A-Z London smartphone map apps don’t compete with these services, but they do offer some real advantages for use in London. One standout feature is app performance. Offline access means that there is no need to stand around and wait for a signal, and no roaming data charges to pay. You can even use your A-Z maps on the tube. The second big advantage is the mapping quality. A-Z mapping is renowned for being easy to use, up to date and accurate. It wouldn’t be fair to expect a free global map service to match this.

The map installs completely on the device so that it is available instantly anywhere and with no internet connection.. These maps are a digital copy of the famous A-Z Street Maps of London with other UK cities available soon. in 1972, the company name was changed from Geographers' Map Company to Geographers' A–Z Map Company. Until relatively recently, [ when?] maps produced by the Geographers' (A–Z) Map Company did not include a publication date. It is possible to determine a date range for publication due to the following: In one scheme, the letters JIHGFEDCBA represent the digits 1 to 9 and 0, so that HFD would be 357, indicating a publication date of March 1957. This seems to have been used on all the company's folding maps, and possibly also those in book form.