MapQuest

About MapQuest, Inc.
MapQuest, Inc. offers Internet, wireless and business mapping applications that help people find places and get there. MapQuest.com

MapQuest.com is one of the most recognized and trusted brands on the Internet and is the leading consumer website for maps and directions.* The MapQuest.com site provides consumers with trusted, reliable mapping and navigation solutions and offers valuable features such as aerial/hybrid imagery, multi-point routing and the ability to find the lowest gas prices.

Go to MapQuest.com » MapQuest Wireless
MapQuest’s suite of wireless services extends the company’s popular place search, mapping and directions services beyond the desktop to cell phones and other wireless devices. MapQuest Wireless offers free solutions for the mobile web as well as free paid voice-guided navigation applications to meet the needs of MapQuest users "on-the-go."

Go to MapQuest Wireless »

MapQuest Platform Services
MapQuest Platform Services has helped thousands of global brands build rich, engaging business mapping applications with our industry-leading geospatial web services platform for a wide spectrum of internet, wireless and desktop applications. Our customers include some of the world’s most recognized names in key industries such as financial services, healthcare, real estate, retail, travel and hospitality, asset tracking, local search, and insurance.

MapQuest Platform Services delivers a unique combination of flexible technology and development tools, expansive mapping data, and industry expertise that can help businesses and developers realize more value from their online mapping solutions.
Get Your Very Own MapQuest
Posted Nov 20th 2008 7:00AM by Glen Ames
Filed under: Features and Improvements

Mhref="http://www.mapquest.com/beta">apQuest

You've probably noticed all the great new features that MapQuest has been recently rolling out including the ability to drag your route to follow the path you want. With all the time you invest in personalizing your travel plans, wouldn't it be great if you could save your results? Well, now you can create and save custom maps as well as personalize your MapQuest experience.

Introducing My MapQuest.
Get your very own place on MapQuest to store all your favorite maps, access your recently mapped locations, and edit your own settings that make MapQuest a more personal experience. The best part is that once you sign up, you take this with you on any computer and, soon, on your mobile device.

Sign Up today and benefit from My MapQuest features such as:

My Maps - Save your mapped locations, custom routes with driving directions, and favorite business searches.
My Settings – Save your personal settings for use wherever you access MapQuest, at home, work or on the road.
Route Fuel Cost Calculator – Using your saved vehicle information, get estimated fuel cost for any routes you create on MapQuest.
Recent Locations - Access the last 10 locations you found on MapQuest wherever you are signed into My MapQuest.

More Soon...
In this release we're putting together the foundation of a personalized MapQuest experience but you can be sure that we will be adding great new features to make your journey more seamless in the coming months. Here at MapQuest we're focusing on creating features that make your life on the road easier.

Find out more about the great new feature of My MapQuest and sign up today!
Permalink Email thisMapQuest 4 Mobile Now Available on 25 Devices, over 8 Carriers, and in 2 Countries!
Posted Nov 20th 2008 5:00AM by Michael Iams
Filed under: MapQuest 4 Mobile

MapQuest 4 Mobile Beta is now available on 25 RIM BlackBerry devices. Our popular application is available on select AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile, Alltel, Bell, Telus, and Rogers devices in the US and Canada.

Check the list below and see if your phone is listed.

In the coming weeks, look for the 8100 (Pearl) and 8700 versions along with a great, new feature of retrieving saved maps and routes from My MapQuest on your MapQuest 4 Mobile application. Learn More

Download the application now: 1) Get your BlackBerry 2) Point your mobile web browser to m.mq4m.com 3) Download!

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MapQuest 4 Mobile Now Available on AT&T BlackBerry Bold; new Verizon and T-Mobile RIM Devices
Posted Nov 13th 2008 5:54PM by Michael Iams
Filed under: MapQuest 4 Mobile

A "bold" new MapQuest – new device builds keep coming! Thousands of BlackBerry users have taken advantage of the great new mobile application, MapQuest 4 Mobile Beta.

We appreciate all the positive feedback our loyal users are providing. But since its debut, the most common question we get is, "When will it be available for my handset?" Rest assured we're working hard to add new devices on a continuing basis!

This week we're introducing the AT&T BlackBerry Bold; Verizon BlackBerry 8830, 8330; & T-Mobile BlackBerry 8300, 8800, and 8820.

MapQuest 4 Mobile Beta is already available for the BlackBerry 8830 on Sprint, and the 8310, 8800, and 8820 models for AT&T.

If you have a compatible phone, try out the MapQuest 4 Mobile application. It's FREE, easy to use, and offers valuable features such as maps, directions, local business search and more. See more information.

That's all 4 now. Keep checking back 4 updates and great new features in the next few weeks!

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Drag your Way to Customized Directions!
Posted Nov 6th 2008 5:30PM by Scott Steinke
Filed under: Features and Improvements

Ever wish you could modify your MapQuest route simply by dragging it around on the map? Well, your wish is coming true.

As part of our ongoing effort to allow MapQuest users more flexibility in tailoring driving directions to their preferences, we are introducing a new draggable route feature. This is a great way to quickly modify your route to avoid traffic or construction, explore a scenic route, or simply use roads you know you prefer. Please give draggable routes a try and let us know what you think as we test and fine-tune it.

The feature is easy to use. The basics:

Generate a route
Click on the blue route highlight and hold your mouse down
Drag the route onto your preferred path. As the mouse is dragged, you will see the "potential" route displayed if the mouse were released at that point
When the mouse is released a small red circle (called a "via" point) will be placed at that point.

Your route will then be modified to pass through that via point, and your directions will be updated (note that you may need to add more than one via point to get exactly the route you want).
You can interact with the via by dragging it to another new location or hovering over it to see more options.

These include:

Remove (simply removes the point from consideration in route calculation)
Search for places nearby
Add as a Route Stop (this makes it appear as a lettered stop on your map and directions)

Helpful hints:

Zoom In. Generally only roads shown at any specific zoom level will be used in route recalculation. Zooming in allows you to more precisely place via points where you want them and avoid unwanted "detours"
Patience is a Virtue. It may take a couple seconds to process your request and update your route
Watch those "potential" routes. Look carefully at the possible routes shown as you drag the mouse (careful, this gets addictive). Let go of the mouse only after you see your preferred route path

We are pretty excited about this feature, but then (having pioneered online driving directions) we're geeks for this sort of thing. We hope you like it too - give it a try today.

Please send any feedback to: http://help.mapquest.com/jive/mqfeedback.jspa
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MapQuest Local Adds AddThis
Posted Oct 29th 2008 8:00AM by Josh Babetski
Filed under: MapQuest Local

This morning we updated MapQuest Local with some enhancements and bug fixes to make using Local more useful and make it easier to share information.

AddThis
To anyone familiar with blogs, AddThis buttons on sites at the bottom of posts and online news articles are pretty common. However, if you're not already familiar with AddThis, it's a service which allows you to easily share and bookmark pages to some of your favorite web sites, in this case: MapQuest Local pages. You can even use it to email a MapQuest Local link to a friend or set it as your home page (although you've probably already done that).

To use it, simply click the big plus button on the Location Bar at the top of the page and it will open up a list of sites to publish to. If your favorite site is not on the list, just click the "more" link for more choices.

Name and Number Please?
You may have noticed that MapQuest Local works a bit differently than the rest of MapQuest. Much of the address information is coming from other sites instead of our own internal data. As a result, when you clicked the "Maps" or "Get Directions" links, we weren't able to pass along the business name or phone number into your map results. Well, we've fixed that. So now when you click the "Maps" and "Get Directions" links from any widget, the business name and phone number (if available) get passed along too.

A few simple things we've added that make MapQuest Local easier to share and more convenient to use.

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MapQuest Widget Upgrade
Posted Oct 28th 2008 2:30PM by Josh Babetski

Current users of the MapQuest Widget are seeing something new in the places they've embedded it. We've just upgraded the features and functionality to make it even more useful and easier to use.

We've improved the Maps and Driving Directions experience
MapQuest Search functionality has been added, allowing you to quickly pull up that address your looking for We've added Traffic information; you can now quickly check the roads before you head out
Performance and functionality improvements
If you don't have the MapQuest Widget yet, you can click the "Grab & Share" link on the widget in this post, on the MapQuest Widget page in the yourminis gallery, or anywhere you see someone has embedded the widget. From there you can embed the widget on your favorite start pages like myAOL or on your favorite social network pages like Facebook or MySpace.

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Get MapQuest Navigator on AT&T
Posted Oct 27th 2008 11:24AM by Ted Babitz
Filed under: MapQuest Navigator

While we've been making a lot of enhancements on MapQuest.com, our mobile services and products certainly aren't being left out! Today we're announcing our MapQuest Navigator 5.0 service is available on your AT&T mobile phone- and billable directly to your AT&T phone plan. Starting today you can get our popular voice-guided navigation service on select AT&T phones and try it out for a FREE trial period!

We've had great feedback on our navigation service and people enjoy the convenience of not having to buy another device when their GPS-enabled mobile phone can get them where they need to go. With MapQuest Navigator on your phone, your maps and directions data is always current - you don't have to worry about updating the data on your PND or in-car navigation system.
What's even better is it doesn't just provide turn-by-turn voice-guided directions, you can also see where you're going with 3D moving maps. And, there's live traffic, walking directions, gas prices, AOL City's Best restaurants/nightlight ratings, and more.

Initially, we're launching with the following phones including: BlackBerry Curve 8210, BlackBerry Pearl 8110, BlackBerry 8820, BlackBerry 8800, MOTO Z9, MOTO Q Global, AT&T Tilt, and Blackjack II – but look for many new devices by the end of the year.

See more information and sign up for the free trial at our MapQuest Navigator AT&T page.
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By Popular Demand... An Optimal iPhone Browsing Experience
Posted Oct 20th 2008 3:02PM by Michael Iams
Filed under: MapQuest Mobile Web, Features and Improvements

MapQuest users have come to rely on the quality and accuracy of MapQuest results no matter where they are -- which is why we are delighted to introduce MapQuest optimized for the iPhone.
We have served millions of requests for MapQuest from iPhone and iPod browsers and now those results will be presented in a fast, easy-to-use way specifically for the iPhone.

Now you can pinch, flick, and tap your way to your destination on MapQuest.com! Our new iPhone interface includes the same features that MapQuest provides on the full-browser experience.
Driving Directions, Maps, Local Search, Traffic, Recent Locations, and Cheapest Gas Prices, with more enhancements showing up automatically in the near future. No downloads needed!

How do I get there?
Easy. Just type mapquest.com into your iPhone or iPod Touch Safari Browser. We'll detect that you are coming from an iPhone and know to send you directly to our iPhone web interface.

Once there, you can tap the "+" at the bottom of your screen and select "Add to Home Screen" to place a shortcut icon on your iPhone's main menu screen. You'll then see the MapQuest Star icon on your screen for easy access back to MapQuest.

We hope you enjoy the user experience of MapQuest for iPhone. Remember to look for more features coming soon!
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MapQuest Local Turns One (Month)
Posted Oct 9th 2008 7:00AM by Josh Babetski
Filed under: Features and Improvements, MapQuest Local

One month ago we launched MapQuest Local, bringing you an easy-to-use dashboard of local activities, events, and other information to give you some "what" and "when" to go with your "where."

Two weeks ago we released a Classifieds widget from Kaango, Used Auto Listings from AOL Autos and added support for Microformats. We also continued to tweak and optimize the page to improve performance and your experience.

Today we're happy to announce even more additions:

Yelp
Yelp provides review information and city guides to help you find out the good, great, and as they put it "not so great" around you. There are reviews for car washes, wineries, pet stores, and much more. I think I've even seen a review for a parking garage. The reviewers are locals and visitors telling Yelp what they thought. Now on MapQuest Local, you can quickly see the best of what Yelp users have found and liked near you.

Sports
Our friends at Topix are providing MapQuest Local with sports news for baseball, hockey, and pro and college football and basketball. Sports is also the first widget you can customize beyond the local city or town. Like other widgets, we try to find the closest relevant content to where you're looking, however we also know that your team isn't necessarily the closest team. Trust us, at our PA office, the our closest NFL team is the Eagles, but a good chunk of our colleagues root for the Steelers. So now you can choose between getting sports news from the local team or from your
team for each sport. Just click the little gear icon to flip around the widget and customize.

Links and Tooltips
We wanted to make it easier for you to bookmark MapQuest Local for different cities, so we're introducing bookmark links which are easier-to-read. For instance, if you want to see what's going on locally in Lancaster, PA, your bookmarked link will look like this: http://local.mapquest.com/lancaster-pa.

We've also added additional information to some of our local content by using tooltips. Now when you hover over certain content like photos or used car images, additional information will appear. See below for some examples.

We're Just Getting Started
Our team loves working on MapQuest Local and we have so many cool features yet to bring you. If you have a site with local content and want to show it on MapQuest Local, don't forget to sign-up for notifications about our MapQuest Local Program. True story: A month ago Yelp was the third organization to sign-up, they were great to work with and today they went live on MapQuest Local. Who's next? You?

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New Logo, New Look & More!
Posted Sep 29th 2008 10:51AM by Gavin Graham
Filed under: MapQuest.com Beta, Features and Improvements

We hope you like all the new changes lately at MapQuest. We recently updated the home, Maps, & Directions entry pages with a map and copy/paste forms, added a great new Local feature, and released a free beta version of MapQuest 4 Mobile...and believe it or not, that's just the beginning.

With all that's brewing in our products, it only makes sense that we would update the MapQuest visual identity too!

You may have noticed some brighter colors, cleaner icons, larger buttons, a more efficient layout, and now, an updated logo. Or, maybe you haven't -- and that's OK. The visual changes aren't meant to distract, they're intended to make your experience simpler and more efficient as we experiment with new innovations.

Our Research & New Focus
We spent a lot of time planning, researching and talking to you about how you wanted MapQuest to evolve. We sought input from some of the best in the branding business and put the results of those efforts in front of hundreds of users like you.

We learned that our brand means a great deal to you. Many users have been with us from the beginning – over 12 years ago. But, as we evolved our product and service offerings so should our logo evolve.

The New Logo & Design
The visual updates we're making reflect this new focus. We explored countless logo options ranging from just the removal of the (in)famous "sparks", to a complete brand reinvention.

Because you've come to know and recognize our brand and the value it exemplifies (MapQuest is the #11 web domain), we landed on a design that stays true to what you said MapQuest means to you. The colors are sharper, the layout is cleaner and the logo is more vibrant and proud. This logo was redrawn from scratch, to make it fresh while staying familiar and instantly recognizable.

Mark the StarWe have also given the MapQuest star a more prominent role in our products, representing not only the locations we find for you, but MapQuest's accuracy and friendly personality.
We affectionately refer to it (him) as "Mark the Star," as in 'it marks the spot.'

So, although you'll see more changes, announcements and features in the coming months, we're still the MapQuest you have come to know and trust. We'll continue to innovate and deliver on the promises our brand makes: accurate, trusted, friendly, and easy to use.

As always, we welcome your suggestions and feedback.
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Local Traffic & Road Conditions Improvements
Posted Sep 25th 2008 3:41PM by Scott Steinke
Filed under: Features and Improvements

Every day our Traffic feature helps tens of thousands of MapQuest users throughout the US to view up-to-the-minute conditions and plan their routes. We recently added some enhancements:

1) New Markets – Local traffic coverage in over a dozen new cities:
Augusta, GA
Corpus Christi, TX
Chattanooga, TN
Fort Wayne, IN
Jackson, MS
Lansing, MI
Lexington, KY
Little Rock, AR
Omaha, NE
Scranton / Wilkes-Barre, PA
Spokane, WA
Toledo, OH
Tulsa, OK

Our coverage of over 100 metro areas now extends to more mid-size towns – including many that some competitors just don't cover. And, we'll be adding more soon!

2) Closed Roads - We now show you when roads have been marked as Closed by our traffic provider. This designation is typically used for long-term construction-related closures along major highways, for example the "New I-65" Project in St. Louis (shown) and for emergency situations that extend for a few days, like the recent flooding along Interstate 80/94 in Chicago:

So remember:

Green = Smooth Sailing
Yellow = Starting to Slow
Red = Stop 'n Go
Black = Use another route!

If you haven't tried out our Road Conditions & Traffic feature, you can find it on the new MapQuest.com Homepage, our new MapQuest Local site, our mobile website, and the new MapQuest 4 Mobile downloadable application. So start using MapQuest to check traffic before heading out on the road!
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Microformat Support on MapQuest Local
Posted Sep 25th 2008 10:00AM by Josh Babetski
Filed under: Features and Improvements, MapQuest Local

MapQuest Local now supports the hCard, hCalendar, and draft Geolocation Microformats.

A Micro-what?
Here's a down-to-earth explanation:

With a little help from your web browser, Microformats on MapQuest Local will allow you to save contact information to your address book. For example: the name, address, phone number and web address of a restaurant or movie theater. You can also save event information to your calendar application. So for example: the date and showtimes for a movie, along with the address information. This makes the information more portable and therefore more useful to you.

How do I See and Use Microformat Information?
Many sites have implemented Microformats, but most current web browsers don't have built-in support yet. Future browser releases will; MapQuest Local is ready today. In the meantime, you can take advantage of Microformats through browser plug-ins and bookmarklets.

Here's a quick example on adding a location to an Address Book application using the Operator add-on for Mozilla Firefox on Mac OS X. Your set-up may vary, but the steps will be very similar.

In #1, I've selected the "Contacts" list in the Operator toolbar. Notice that the locations in the list match locations on the MapQuest Local page
In #2, I've selected a location
In #3, I've selected the option to export
In #4, I now have a new entry in my Address Book application with all of the fields correctly filled in
In #5, by syncing my address book with my mobile device, I now have the information easily at hand for later reference
Adding Event information to your calendar is pretty much the same process.

This is just another in the many ways we're working on making all of MapQuest more useful.

PS: There are some additional recommendations on the Microformats site for Microformat-enabling your broswer.

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New on MapQuest Local: AOL Autos and Kaango Classifieds
Posted Sep 24th 2008 9:00AM by Antony Pegg
Filed under: Features and Improvements, MapQuest Local

Wanted: Classified Information
Earlier this month, we introduced you to MapQuest Local, giving you a customizable dashboard of localized content for cities and towns. We also put out a call for sites with local content, asking if they would like to make that content available. The response has been huge! Our friends at Kaango were one of the first to talk with us and today we're happy to release: Classifieds provided by Kaango.

Car Shopping?
Today we've also added Used Auto Listings from AOL Autos. Search local autos by make and model and scroll through photos in your quest to find a new ride.

What's Next?
We're hard at work on even more content and features. If you've got local content and want display it on MapQuest Local, don't forget to sign-up for more information about our MapQuest Local Program.

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Building Bridges... Data Updates Making a Difference
Posted Sep 19th 2008 1:06PM by Steve Melus

Working at MapQuest we strive to stay abreast of road-related problems nationwide. When there's a serious one (a significant safety hazard and/or a situation that impacts many people) we jump on it as soon as we can. Even though we keep a lookout for problems, it's jarring, nonetheless, when a significant emergency occurs.

This was the case on August 1, 2007, when we saw, in real time, the the tragic collapse of the I-35W bridge in Minneapolis. First there was shock, and then MapQuest teammates familiar with that part of Minneapolis began discussing alternate routes and how disruptive this would be to the area. Looking for some way to help, our Customer Support team reached out to the Minnesota Department of Transportation (Mn/DOT) which initiated a rapid series of conversations about Mn/DOT's preferred detour routes. Mn/DOT set up the closures and detours necessary to keep traffic
moving safely and to avoid impacting emergency crews and rescue workers.

The MapQuest data and operations specialists quickly dropped other work and adjusted our routing data to reflect those changes. We were the first to reflect the bridge and road closures on our site. Mn/DOT appreciated the effort, and they have kept in touch, periodically sending updates as the work has progressed.

Photo courtesy of Minnesota Department of TransportationWhen the word went out last week that the new St. Anthony Falls Bridge would be opening yesterday, MapQuest Customer Support again reached out to our contacts at Mn/DOT and got the scoop. When the opening date and time were decided, our data and ops people again went to work to undo the closures we put in place last year. Those changes went live on MapQuest.com yesterday and again, we were the first to include the reopened bridge on our site.

It was a tragedy for those whose lives were affected by the collapse. They will no doubt feel the pain for the foreseeable future. As a community, however, they can take some solace in knowing Mn/DOT has been able to rebuild a modern, solid, safe bridge significantly ahead of schedule.

We're glad Minneapolis is getting back to normal, and we're glad we could help in this small way.
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MapQuest 4 Mobile Beta Launch
Posted Sep 11th 2008 6:05AM by Michael Iams
Filed under: MapQuest 4 Mobile

The launches keep coming this week at MapQuest! We're adding to our announcements with the launch of MapQuest 4 Mobile Beta.

We're excited to show off our new free mobile product that offers maps, directions, local business search and more for BlackBerry devices. One quick look at the interface and you'll see how intuitive it is -- you'll go from a new user to a pro in a single use. Try out the scrolling carousel across the top and you'll see how easy it is to use.

Those that have tried this new mobile app out immediately found it engaging and very practical. Not only does it get you where you need to go with street and hybrid (aerial imagery with street names) map views, we have handy features such as live traffic conditions and MapQuest's database of over 16 million points of interest to search from.

One of the really cool features is the GPS Find Me feature. Your GPS chip helps locate you and you can quickly get directions from your current location and track your progress as you get to your destination.

MapQuest 4 Mobile is currently available for download for the BlackBerry 8830 on Sprint, and the 8310, 8800, and 8820 models for AT&T. Many more devices will be supported in the coming months.

Get more information and download the product at our product page.

That's all 4 now. Keep checking back 4 updates.
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MapQuest.com
Features and Improvements (18)
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MapQuest 4 Mobile (3)
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For Developers
The MapQuest Developer Network is the one-stop resource for developing on the MapQuest Platform. Be sure to check out the MapQuest Developer Blog for the latest developer news and information.

Contact MapQuest
Have a question or comment for MapQuest.com?
Contact MapQuest.com to report errors in maps or directions, update business listings, or to provide general comments or suggestions through MapQuest's online help form.
Bring Us YOUR Local Content and Feeds!
Posted Sep 9th 2008 5:05AM by Josh Babetski
Filed under: Features and Improvements, MapQuest Local

Do you own a website with local content?

Would you like to reach over 47M+ Unique Users every month?

As a follow up to our initial release of MapQuest Local, we wanted to also provide some insight into our future Local plans. We know there are numerous web sites out there with rich and relevant local content that would be of interest to our users. So, we'll be opening up MapQuest to enable you to expose your content and drive traffic directly back to your site.
If you want access to the 12th largest web site audience in the US - an audience who comes to with an interest in one or more explicit locations - bring us your feeds! Bring us your location relevant content. Bring us useful information both general and niche. If you're a venture capitalist, bring us the companies you're backing. If you're a start-up or big Internet powerhouse - let's talk.
If you're a one-person operation with a pizza shop review blog: that's great content! We want to hear from you.

We're already working with our next set of partners for relevant content to MapQuest Local for the next batch of widgets, want to join too?

If you're interested in being a part of the wave of content on MapQuest Local, visit this sign-up form. Locations are much more than a red star on a map. With your help, we're looking forward to bringing a more Local experience to all MapQuest visitors.

- Your MapQuest Local Team

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MapQuest Goes Local
Posted Sep 9th 2008 5:00AM by MapQuest Local Team
Filed under: Features and Improvements, MapQuest Local

Today we are launching MapQuest Local - the next step in our journey to add more relevant content to your maps and directions experience.

Local on the Internet is not new. For years, many websites have offered local guides or local content, but its often limited to just the largest cities and only a few categories. This requires you to hunt and peck all over the Internet to find the local information you need whether it's a place you live or are visiting. But now, MapQuest is providing a way to get your information all in one place, across all the categories you care about, large city OR small.

What does that really mean? Imagine spreading out your Sunday newspaper sections out all at once and seeing the highlights of all the sections on one page. That's what the new MapQuest
Local brings to you! We're giving you a view of the information available around the web for the area you're interested in.

Here's how it works:

You can easily get to MapQuest Local by clicking on the new orange Local icon at the top of the page or look for the orange links throughout the MapQuest site.

If you've visited the Local page before, we remember the last location you entered. If not, we pick a location for you by determining if you have a saved a default, home or work location, from our settings page. Didn't know we had a settings page? You do now! So take a moment and set up your default settings. If you don't have a default, we'll use the most recent search on MapQuest. Or course, you can always choose a new city by clicking the "Change Location" link next to the current location. If you enter an address, just remember that MapQuest Local will just use the city.

MapQuest's approach to 'local' is to provide you access to local information (including news, events, movies, gas prices and other local content) in a simple, easy to use interface that is draggable, customizable and collapsible. When you change your location, each widget will update to match your selection. You can also refresh a widget's content by clicking the circular arrow button or expand or collapse a widget using the +/- button . Each widget contains links that will take you to the content provider. Pretty easy, right?

To rearrange the widgets into whatever order you'd like, just click on the top of the widget and drag it to wherever you'd like. If you don't want to display a widget, you can turn it off by clicking the "Customize This Page" link at the top of the page. The customization panel will also let you choose to auto-update every 10 minutes.

We're starting out with a great set of data including movie listings, restaurants, traffic, news, weather, gas prices, events, pictures, video and city's best recommendations. So, how could you use this? Here's an example. Once you've decided to go see a particular movie, you don't want more information on that movie; you want to know where you can see it and what theaters are near you. But, what if you want to go to dinner before the movie, where's the nearest restaurant and what if there's traffic issues to get there, what's an alternative route? And, you need to get gas but you want the lowest prices - do you want to get gas near home or near the movie theater. You get the idea, all this and more can be found in one easy page on MapQuest Local. We're creating a localized experience for you around the place you're going to be.

Again, this is just the beginning of the MapQuest Local experience. We look forward to providing you with new features and content coming out soon. More categories and data offerings will be coming soon. So, come back often and if you have interests in specific topics not available today in MapQuest Local, please send us your suggestions through the feedback link.

Come to us to experience what's around your location!

- Your MapQuest Local Team

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The MapQuest Beta Part II: Maps and Forms and Logos, Oh My!
Posted Aug 26th 2008 7:54AM by Chip Diffendaffer
Filed under: MapQuest.com Beta, Features and Improvements

As Mark said, today's launch of the MapQuest Beta is only the start of many exciting things to come from MapQuest. Let's take a look at some of the areas in more detail.

The Map
Probably the most significant change to the Beta is the addition of a map to the home, map, and directions form pages. The map provides immediate access to key local information.

The starting location of the map is based either on your personal settings or your current location. By default, it looks first for your home or work address in your MapQuest settings. However, if you choose to change the location using the link above the map (1), it will override all other defaults and we'll remember that location the next time you visit MapQuest.

You can easily print the mapped location, send the location to your cell phone or email, or generate a link to the mapped location with the buttons along the top (2). Enter a business name or category in the search nearby box (3), and we'll search for places near the location specified.

Just above the map, you'll find the current weather conditions for the area (4). Click on the weather link to pop open more weather information including a forecast and even weather cameras, where available. On the map itself, click the gas prices button (5) to pull the latest information from our gas prices site to show you the highest and lowest prices in the area. The traffic button (6) activates live traffic conditions in over 85 cities, and find relative speed or flow, incidents, and construction.

Local weather, traffic, and gas prices on the home page map are just a start. We will be introducing more local information in the future. What would you like to see on the map?

The Forms
We've also combined the forms for maps and directions on the home page. You can search for a business or enter an address to get a map in left half of the combined form. Getting directions is as easy as tabbing the keyboard or clicking the button to expose the form for the ending location.

Your saved and recent locations are still quickly accessible in the drop-down and you can access a quick list of airports and search categories by clicking on the magnifying glass icon in the search field.

Another key update to the forms is the introduction of the copy and paste address option. This alternative form style allows you to copy and paste addresses, even multi-line addresses, directly into the address box. You can easily switch between the new copy and paste forms and the classic forms by clicking the toggle link in the bottom left of the form box. Whichever form style you prefer, we will remember your preference throughout your visit and when you return.

The Logo
Did you notice our new logo? I'll let our senior designer talk about the refreshed brand in the next post.

Thanks to a lot of hard work from our team here at MapQuest, we'll be making updates and releasing more new features very soon. So try out our Beta and, as always, be sure to tell us what you think.

Have a great Labor Day weekend!

Chip Diffendaffer
Product Manager
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The MapQuest Beta Part I: Check It Out!
Posted Aug 26th 2008 6:40AM by Mark Law, VP of Product
Filed under: MapQuest.com Beta, Features and Improvements

Today we begin the launch of the new MapQuest Beta. I say "begin" because over the next few months we'll be enhancing your maps and directions experience by adding more location-relevant content, features and search capabilities.

You can find the Beta site simply by clicking on the link at the top of the MapQuest.com home page.

As Christian, our General Manager, always says, "Our mission is to provide the best user experience to find where it is, how I get there and what's nearby or along my way." I am confident with these changes you'll see that MapQuest will become even more useful to you on a daily basis.

Today's Beta launch is focused on the new MapQuest home, maps and directions form pages. One quick look at the new home page and you'll see we have retained your favorite features while revamping the page from top to bottom starting with a refreshed logo and a crisper look and feel.

New to the home page is a map. But, it's not just a map, it's a map that contains location-relevant content that you can toggle on and off like gas prices, local traffic and current weather. The map location is defaulted to your current location or personal settings.

We've also streamlined the address input forms based on popular demand from our users, adding the ability to copy and paste an address into one field.

There is so much more to tell you – but I'll let my MapQuest colleagues give you more details and highlights in Part II from Product Manager, Chip Diffendaffer and Part III from Senior Designer,
Gavin Graham.

So please take some time to explore the new Beta pages and check back often as we'll be rolling out more exciting features soon! And of course, as always, give us your thoughts and feedback.

Happy Mapping!

Mark Law
VP of Product
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MapQuest Adds More Content in Select Search Results
Posted Aug 22nd 2008 12:36PM by Jeff Greenwald

MapQuest has partnered with Citysearch to bring users rich content about the places in their neighborhood. Reviews, menus, photos and more are now available for select listings. For example you're looking for restaurants in New York City you'll notice some new icons on the map. When you click on them you'll see the details of the business as well as photographs, reviews, menus, offers and a message from the business that highlights their products and services.

As well, when these specific listings appear within the search results on MapQuest they are highlighted with their name being blue underlined and they have a "more info" link to indicate to the user that we have additional information about the business that you can explore. Also, on the map are large information windows to contain this rich data and a profile page that appears when you click the business name of an advertiser. You can also print this information out and take it with you on new printer friendly pages for directions or just a map of the business.

We hope you enjoy the new comprehensive data that these specific listings offer to you. Look for more listings in the future!
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Gas Prices Now Instantly Show Up Near You
Posted Aug 14th 2008 12:52PM by Glen Ames
Filed under: Gas Prices, Features and Improvements

With gas prices being top of everyone's mind, you'll be glad to know MapQuest just made finding cheap gas in your city easier. We've updated the Gas Prices home page to show prices at gas stations right near your current location. Even if you haven't set a default location with MapQuest, we'll try to determine a location near you and show the three lowest priced stations in your area.

For an even more local view, the Gas Prices home page will use your home or work location if you have set a default on MapQuest.com.

If you don't already have a home or work default assigned, just go to the MapQuest Settings page. Or, find it by clicking on the "Saved & Recent" area in the Maps form area and input your home or work default.

Go look for cheap gas now by visiting MapQuest Gas Prices or click on the Gas Prices icon in the MapQuest header.
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MapQuest Launches Send to OnStar
Posted May 29th 2008 9:55AM by Matt Brewer
Filed under: Features and Improvements

MapQuest is pleased to announce the general release of OnStar eNav, an online destination planning service that allows OnStar subscribers to send locations to the Turn-by-Turn Navigation
Service in their OnStar vehicle. In the weeks leading up to launch, we've had all kinds of folks taking eNav out for a 'test drive'. One of our Product guys, Marshall, sent us a note about his experience, and it sounded so good I decided to share it with the MapQuest Blog:

"Friday night at 6:30pm, I used the Send To OnStar server and added a Chili's Restaurant, a soccer field, and my home to my OnStar address book using the Send To OnStar anchors on the MQ pages.

I hopped in the car, connected to Virtual Advisor and asked for Chili's... the directions were downloaded quickly and the route was perfect! After a Coke (hahaha), I then asked for "Soccer" (which I had used as the label for Amos Herr Park) and again the system worked flawlessly, including using a shortcut that I know! Finally, the wife and I swapped cars and I showed her how to use the system... she asked for "Home" and, once again, the system performed perfectly!

I cannot tell you how excited I am about this. Our car doesn't have a nav system - but it did come with OnStar and thru the radio and the eNav service, and it's almost as good as the $3000 Nav system option!"

Thanks for the great feedback, Marshall! To check out more details about OnStar eNav from MapQuest, check out the Send to OnStar page.

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Keeping Gas Prices Accurate on MapQuest
Posted Apr 28th 2008 11:33AM by Jeff Greenwald
Filed under: Gas Prices

The popularity of finding cheap gas on MapQuest Gas Prices continues to grow with the never-ending price increases at the pump. About the only thing you like going up on gas prices is our accuracy! MapQuest updates thousands of gas prices every few hours. Due to the high volume of data flowing in from gas stations across the country, we occasionally have a handful of pricing irregularities slip through our data provider's filter. However, we work very closely with our data providers to try to ensure that MapQuest visitors get current and accurate data. In fact, we update
our data seven times a day. Not every station updates their price that frequently so we expire gas prices after 48 hours so that consumers have current information when shopping around for fuel.

We saw in the news the other day that a station in Carlisle, Pennsylvania had a price that was 60 cents lower than normal. Instead of the normal $3.559, the price was reported as $2.959. I'm sure more than a few MapQuest visitors saw that price and thought, "Wow! I am going to go fill up the tank." Was there a sale? Was there a radio or television promotion going on? No, unfortunately a processing error occurred and an errant price slipped through the filter and was displayed on the web.

As some consumers found out after they visited or called the station, the price was not actually 60 cents cheaper. We investigated the pricing issue with our data provider and found out that two transactions that streamed in on April 23rd for this station were misreported. Fortunately, the price corrected itself when the system updated, but for those who saw the lower price it was too late.

So what's next? Our data provider ensures us that they will be updating their filter in the next couple of weeks which will greatly reduce the risk of any erroneous prices being reported. We also need your help. If you see an incorrect gas price on our page, visit our help page and send us a note. Also if there's something on the site that you like or dislike, let us know. We appreciate all the feedback MapQuest Gas Price visitors have given us so far.
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'Send to Garmin' Service Now Live on MapQuest
Posted Apr 16th 2008 3:07PM by Matt Brewer

We gave you a teaser about a week ago, and now for the millions of Garmin Personal Navigation Device users out there, you can plan on MapQuest and send trip planning results directly to your Garmin GPS unit. The service went live April 10 and it adds to the great 'Send To' features including Send to Cell, Send to Email and soon to come: Send to OnStar.

Remember you just choose the Send to GPS feature in the 'Send' pull down in the upper left of your maps or directions page.

You'll be able to send your route or trip planning results to one of many compatible Garmin devices.

To see if you have a compatible Garmin device and to download the Garmin Communicator plug-in, check out all the details on our Send Maps and Directions to GPS feature page.

Try out this new handy feature!
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The Friendlier Face of MapQuest For Mobile Web, Now With Live Traffic
Posted Apr 1st 2008 8:22AM by Josh Parker

Have you ever been heading across town, and wish you had access to those traffic helicopters to see where the jams are? Now you can check the hotspots with a quick glance to your cell phone.
MapQuest for Mobile Web, one of the most popular mobile internet sites,1 now has Traffic Reports to go along with a new look and feel. We've also simplified the address and search fields to make it easier to enter your quest. And for those of you that take the 'greener' path, our Find Gas Prices feature now has a full slate of Alternative fuels including E-85, Natural Gas and Biodiesel.

MapQuest for Mobile Web

Traffic

Gas Prices

Best of all - even with all these helpful, comprehensive features; MapQuest for Mobile Web is still a free service.2 To check it out on your device, you can either type in www.mapquest.com on your mobile web browser, or you can plan on MapQuest.com from your home computer and click on "Send to Cell" within any of your search results.3

1. m:metrics December 2007

2. MapQuest provides the MapQuest for Mobile Web service free of charge; however, your wireless phone carrier may charge data fees to access the mobile web.

3. MapQuest provides the Send to Cell service free of charge; however, your wireless phone carrier may charge data fees to access the mobile web or for text messages. Some carriers block access to URL links within text messages; if you cannot click the link or you do not receive the text message, please check with your carrier.
m:metrics December 2007

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MapQuest to Add Send to GPS Feature for Garmin Devices
Posted Mar 31st 2008 10:53AM by Matt Brewer
Filed under: Features and Improvements

If you're a gadget geek like me, you probably love Personal Navigation Devices (PNDs, for those in the business). Having a GPS in your car is like having your buddy that knows where everything is, and can tell you which exit to take in order to get around the evening rush hour. But searching for an address on a 4 inch screen as you're cooking down the interstate at 60 mph isn't exactly "safe". So, we made it easy for you to plan on MapQuest.com, from the comfort of your home computer.

Introducing our new "Send to GPS" web feature: coming in April, we'll be adding a simple drop-down link to our search results pages that allow you to download destinations or itineraries to your Garmin GPS device, and take them with you on the road. We've teamed up with Garmin Ltd., one of the best-known brands in navigation, to sync up the 16 million points of interests on MapQuest.com to dozens of their most popular devices.

Even though you've traded your printer for a GPS gadget to help you find places, you can still rely on MapQuest to make your travels safer and more convenient. To check compatible Garmin devices and to download the Garmin Communicator plug-in, check out all the details on our Send to GPS feature page.

Happy travels.
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The New MapQuest Toolbar
Posted Mar 19th 2008 12:58PM by Matt Brewer
Filed under: Features and Improvements

If you're like most MapQuest users, you don't just come to MapQuest once or twice a month - you get maps and directions on an ongoing basis. With our new MapQuest Toolbar you can have easy access to the most useful MapQuest features right on your browser at all times.

The Toolbar has one-click quick links to Maps, Directions and a Web search capability. But perhaps one of the most convenient features is the quick link to our new Real Time Traffic feature.

Just choose one of more than 80 cities across the US and you'll quickly click to real time traffic in your area at any time. Check it before you leave for work or before an important appointment.
You'll now be able to see congestion before you hop on a highway and choose an alternative route.

You probably already have one or maybe more toolbars on your browser but do you use all the features they bring? Use a Toolbar where you know you'll get the most use out of the handy features it provides right at your fingertips.

Try out the Toolbar now!
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Announcing MapQuest Traffic
Posted Mar 17th 2008 2:35PM by Scott Steinke
Filed under: Features and Improvements

We're pleased to announce the launch of our new Current Traffic feature. Now when you bring up a map or generate driving directions, with one click you can easily visualize traffic conditions in most major US metros. This is a great way to quickly check traffic as you begin your commute home from the office, or before heading out to the airport, concert, ballpark, or mall. Keep in mind that once you've started your trip, MapQuest Traffic is a real-time feature (updated every five minutes) and things can change quickly once you're on the road.

How to use Traffic:

Traffic view of Miami, FL

There are two main parts to the feature:

Relative speed or Flow: This is the green/yellow/red highlights over major roads which indicate congestion levels. Think of the colors like this:

Green = Smooth sailing
Yellow = Congestion building - be extra cautious and look out for slowing traffic
Red = Backed up! Plan to be patient, try a detour, or wait for things to improve

Incidents and Construction: Pretty simple – just click on the icons to get more info, or toggle the display on/off using the boxes in the Current Traffic legend.

Incidents: Accidents and other events which might impact normal traffic flow
Construction: That stuff that keeps you from getting to your favorite vacation spot on time every summer!

Traffic view with Incident Info open:

MapQuest Traffic provides exceptional coverage in over 100 metro areas. So, try it out for your own daily driving needs and let us know what you think. To find out more about MapQuest Traffic and other cool new features, check out Exploring MapQuest!
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Building multi-point routes
Posted Mar 6th 2008 9:37AM by April Connolly
Filed under: Features and Improvements

Our new interface lets you easily plan and reorder trips with up to 10 stops. Here's a quick glance on how to use the multi-point routing features:

First off, generate a route by entering two locations in the directions form, then click "Get Directions".

Select "Add Another Stop to Your Route" in the section below your written directions right above your map. Type in the business name and/or location in the two boxes in the tan section. You can use this tool to add locations for up to 10 stops to your route.

Your route map and directions will show each segment with stops designated by letters A, B, C, etc.

You can collapse or expand the text view each segment in your written directions by clicking on the arrow beside the start of each segment label.

To edit locations or remove points along your route, click the "Edit" and "Remove" buttons located to the right of each stop in your text directions.

You can also use the "Move up" and "Move Down" tools to reorder your stops in your route.

In the next post, we'll describe improvements to our printer friendly pages and how you can customize what you print to take on the road!
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MapQuest Gas Prices Adds New Enhancements Including Fuel Cost Calculator
Posted Dec 6th 2007 3:59PM by Jeff Greenwald
Filed under: Gas Prices

When we launched MapQuest Gas Prices last year we were thrilled to see how popular it was with our users. People love being able to not only find gas stations in their area, but also find the cheapest prices – a pretty useful feature these days. Since then, we've gotten a lot of feedback that we've used to make some great improvements to the site.

Here's a list of a few of the new features:

Gas Price Calculator – Just enter your Trip Distance, your car's Miles per Gallon and the Cost per Gallon of the gas station you picked from the site. Hit calculate and you'll quickly get the approximate cost of your trip.

Alternative Fuels – Now you can easily find a station nearby that has the type of alternative fuel your car needs. Even if you don't have a car that runs on alternative fuel, you might be curious to see where you could find it.

Expiration on Gas Prices – We update our gas & diesel prices up to 7 times a day, but not every station sends in updates everyday. Any price older than 48 hours no longer shows up in your search results.

If you're an existing user, you'll notice the changes and we hope you are happy with them. If you are new to MapQuest Gas Prices, go to the site at http://gasprices.mapquest.com and check out the prices in your area!

If you'd like to find out more, go to the Gas Prices About page.

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MapQuest Navigator 5.0 - New Features and Lower Price
Posted Nov 18th 2007 9:38AM by Amelia Williams
Filed under: MapQuest Navigator

I'm happy to announce that the MapQuest Wireless team launched the latest version of MapQuest Navigator 5.0, an application that provides voice-guided, turn-by-turn navigation right on your mobile phone. There are some handy new features such as 3D views, a gas price finder and traffic alerts. And, we've included AOL's CityGuide info to give you listings of the best restaurants, bars and live music venues- basically all the locals' favorites.

The other day I was meeting a friend for dinner in Denver and we searched for City's Best 'Burgers' through Navigator's CityGuide search screen. We landed at a joint called "The Cherry Cricket".
My kind of place - a bar menu with humongous burgers. When I was on my way to the airport the next day, Navigator popped up an alert that steered me around a jam on I-70 - which was key since I was running late yet again...

Anyone who's been in an electronics store lately has seen that standalone GPS units can cost hundreds of dollars, and putting one in the dash of your car costs a boatload. Why buy another gadget when your BlackBerry® or other GPS smartphone can get you the same results? Personally, I'd rather carry one do-it-all device in my pocket. With MapQuest Navigator I can get my monthly service for less than the cost of my jamocha double half-whip every morning.

So here's the kicker - we want folks to check out Navigator 5.0, and we wanted to give a great incentive to try it out - we made it cheap! Right now, MapQuest Navigator 5.0 is only $4.99 per month- which is about half of the ten bucks a month your carrier might charge you for similar services. Anyone that signs up before the end of the year can get the great price, and there's no obligation for a long contract - it's a month to month service.

Check out more details here, and let us know what you think. We're very interested in what you think.

Cheers- and happy travelin' over Turkey Day!

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New Enhancements for MapQuest for Mobile Web
Posted Oct 23rd 2007 10:40AM by Amelia Williams
Filed under: MapQuest Mobile Web

On the heels of our launch of MapQuest Beta, we're following it up with some exciting enhancements to MapQuest for Mobile Web, a.k.a. our 'WAP' site. If you haven't tried MapQuest on your web-enabled cell phone, I'll give you an overview and then introduce the new enhancements to our service.

Almost all mobile phones sold in the last few years can give you access to the mobile web, so it's not like you have to have the latest gadget! Just go to www.mapquest.com on your phone's mobile web browser and you'll be able to find places, get maps and directions - 'right-sized' for your mobile phone. Millions of people are already using MapQuest for Mobile Web every month, and we're helping them get where they need to go, while they're on the go.

Here are the basics. In "Find a Place" you can search 16 million Points of Interest and find restaurants, hotels, parks, and more; just by putting in a name, zip, intersection or city. On most carriers you'll also enjoy our Click to Call feature; where you can simply click the phone number within the searched location and immediately call the business. Use Map a Location to get maps of the US and Canada that you can pan and zoom. And, in "Get Directions" you'll find reliable turn by turn directions just like online - only right on your phone. You can also choose advanced route options to avoid highways or toll roads.

And now we're introducing additional valuable features to our mobile-web service.

Gas Prices
OK, we're all shocked at the price of gas these days, but perhaps MapQuest can help ease your pain a bit. Now you can find the lowest priced gas on MapQuest for Mobile Web. Simply click on the 'Find Gas Prices', and you can find local stations by price, distance or the station name. So, whether you're running on "E", or just looking to save a buck, MapQuest Gas Prices can help you out.

Multi-point directions
Making more than one stop along your way?We've upgraded our 'Get Directions' link, to make multiple stops on a trip or while running errands. You can now add up to six locations to your route and get turn-by-turn directions from point A to B to C, etc, displayed right on your phone's screen.

Walking Directions
Taking on the city on foot? MapQuest for Mobile Web now has a Walking Directions option that displays the most direct route for pedestrians. Our walking routes ignore one-way streets and provide you with the shortest distance available.

So there you have it, enhanced features to make your on the go experience even better. Type in www.mapquest.com into your mobile browser and you're on your way.

Note: Check with your carrier about mobile web access – sometimes it's included with your service, but they may charge a small additional fee for web browsing or it may count toward your minutes.
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Features and Improvements (18)
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MapQuest Mobile Web (2)Blog Tags
navigation alltell ATT GPS mobile traffic usa sprint tmobile directions local blackberry MyMapquest sports microformats DraggabableRoute bold browsers bridge DraggableRoute VerizonWireless maps addthis classifieds iphone wireless minnesota rogers canada widgets CustomMaps yelp ipod t-mobile bell personalization search autos topix navigator data rim SaveRoute closure telus For Developers
The MapQuest Developer Network is the one-stop resource for developing on the MapQuest Platform. Be sure to check out the MapQuest Developer Blog for the latest developer news and information.

Contact MapQuest
Have a question or comment for MapQuest.com?
Contact MapQuest.com to report errors in maps or directions, update business listings, or to provide general comments or suggestions through MapQuest's online help form.