Take me home, country road... (theaa.co.uk)

Member Name: wendyloo

Product:	theaa.co.uk
Date:	23/02/04 (508 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Quick, easy to navigate, very comprehensive, detailed landmarks

Disadvantages: none

I was brought up as an RAC girl, I suppose, but since driving myself about, I have embraced the AA, or Automobile Association. Why the change? Not sure, but we did have an AA shop in Maidstone High Street for many years so maybe that was the turning point.

This opinion is for the service that is provided by AA via the internet, and not for a separate ?boxed? route planner that can be purchased in software shops.

I have used the AA for a range of needs. My car insurance was arranged via the AA. My son?s driving lessons have been via the AA. I have bought AA road maps. I have broken down (or locked my keys in the car!) on several occasions and have been able to call the AA to come and rescue me as I have been paying for their assistance for many moons also. Now, this may seem costly (especially as they seem to take it all in one go from my bank account) but at three o?clock on a cold February morning on the side of the M4 with your head gasket gone, you really appreciate the sight of the AA van lighting up the road, and the cost descends into insignificance.

The latest twist in my delightful affair with the AA is the ?route planning? service on the internet. As a navigator, I am fine as long as I can turn my map book this way or that, to face which way I am pointing. Even large maps don?t phase me too much (and I can refold them). However, when I am driving this can be just a tad dangerous. Enter AA route planners!

Let me explain. This past weekend I drove a total of 1180 miles to attend my younger bruv?s wedding in a village north of Edinburgh called Markinch. Beautiful setting, wonderful company and lots of Ceilidh dancing! This was a long drive and potentially would have caused mayhem in my relationships with my travelling companions as I am not normally known for my patience when behind a steering wheel. These particular travelling companions included my mum who has dementia and my boyfriend who has dyslexia and
so has difficulty with relaying back to me what he is reading on the map in time for me to make the necessary adjustments on the road. My mum just assumes that we are somewhere completely different and questions every turn the car (or other cars) make. None of this can be helped. I also had my daughter following in her old jalopy with the rest of my brood, and so my second daughter was reading the instructions also.

Prior to setting off, daughter and I typed in www.theaa.com and chose ?travel and leisure?. On the top left hand side of the page, there is a ?route planner? section which invites you to ?get a route?. Click on that option and you are taken to a page which asks for details such as: which day? Avoiding motorways? Avoiding tolls? Or whether you would like a caravan route. All very comprehensive.

Daughter and I wanted to get companions and self from A ? B with a stop over at A and a ½ as we were staying at someone?s house in Blackpool. We had to do this via two ?route plans? as it made more sense and we could ditch one lot of instructions and use the second day?s instructions on day two ? still with me??

The way the route is set out makes it very easy to refer to while you are driving. You are given the option to make changes to your route ie using a different motorway if preferred, then you can print using a ?printer friendly? option. We printed off two lots of routes so that each of us could have a copy in case we got separated. The route plan gives you straight forward written instructions. There are four columns: Acc (not sure what this stands for but means the actual mileage done); Dist (the distance between each section that they are telling you about); Route (tells you which motorway/road should now be driving on); and Directions (?branch left ? signposted ?The North West?) to join M5) etc, There is a small map 5? x 5? to show you how the AA have routed you on your journey, but to be honest, it isn?t really nec
essary as the written instructions are best. It also tells you where you can stop for a cuppa and comfort. This is the best part as you can plan your stops and know how far you have travelled at that point and how far is left.

The routes also show where there is a Travelodge, incase you want to kip over. Personally, I prefer stopping where there is a travelodge noted as it usually means that it is a MOTO service station and has a BP garage. MOTO are my preferred CLEAN toilets and eating facilities and also I can get Nectar points on my BP petrol (I know, I shouldn?t be using BP!!) ( I will just add that I had a wonderful man came and helped me in a predicament at Charnock Richard in Lancs, - a Welcome Break I think, and Shell garage, but then I wouldn?t have had a predicament if it had been a MOTO ;) )

You can use these print-outs for future journeys, and you could use them and reverse the information to get you back home. There is a facility on the AA site which will reverse the information for you, but personally that uses up ink and paper and I am a bit of a Scrooge with my ink.

The website also offer a route plan service for Europe and Ireland which I hope to be able to use at some point in the near future ? well a girl can wish can?t she!?!

So, I highly recommend this internet site and the route planner to anyone who needs to drive somewhere where they are not sure of. The landmarks are up-to-date and easy to spot. The reassuring sentence at the end of the route plan tells you ?You have reached your destination? and so far, every time I have used these plans, I have.

Happy driving!
Wendyloo 2004

Summary: