(EMAILWIRE.COM, July 22, 2002 ) Finding your way around the Motor City just got easier thanks to Rand McNally, the world's premier provider of mapping, routing and travel solutions. The company today announced the release of the 2003 Detroit Tri-County & Vicinity Street Guide, a full color, spiral-bound print atlas bundled with a corresponding digital edition CD-ROM. The combination package offers the most comprehensive street mapping of the tri-county area of Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties, and eastern portions of fast-growing Livingston and Washtenaw counties, including Ann Arbor.

The Rand McNally 2003 Detroit Tri-County & Vicinity Street Guide provides the most up-to-date and easy-to-use street maps covering 3,194 square miles and 237 communities, including downtown Windsor, Ontario. The edition will be updated annually.

The Street Guide is built on Rand McNally's proprietary Page & GridTM system, which ensures that year after year, map locations remain the same for maximum accuracy. Each map page is numbered and every location falls in a letter-number grid on that page. For example, Ford Field is 4345-D5 (page number-grid section) and will always appear there no matter which Street Guide title, year, or format.

The Street Guide is designed to be easy to read and easy-to-use so travelers can be more productive. Features of the guide include:

Print edition

Maps are now seamless across counties and boundaries so you won't have to change books or sections when driving
Full index of street names that now includes block numbers and ZIP codes, and an index of points of interest, such as parks, beaches, golf courses and shopping centers, with the page and grid location
New cartography enhances readability and usability
PageFinderTM Map lets you easily find your area of interest and corresponding map page
Detailed downtown Detroit map and a vicinity map to show you an overview of the area
Digital edition

New digital maps on CD-ROM match the print atlas page for page
Search addresses and points of interest
Create custom maps featuring your information or points of interest
Download information from the Internet on to your maps
"The new Street Guide mapping system is a major step for Rand McNally, and we're proud for Detroit to be our debut market," said Michael K. Hehir, president and CEO of Rand McNally. "We are continually innovating. Only Rand McNally offers the kind of expertise and technology to create a product that integrates print and digital mapping."

The Rand McNally Page & Grid system is also available digitally to businesses to use with an existing Geographic Information System (GIS) database to make the GIS data correspond with the print Street Guide. Only Rand McNally offers this digital and print interface.

"Our goal was to create a mapping system that will help people be more productive and efficient in a metro area," said Jim Welch, senior vice president of local travel for Rand McNally. "The Street Guide will be especially helpful to the real estate agent and home buyer going to a new neighborhood, the delivery driver and dispatcher planning that day's route, and the contractor driving to a new job site."

Additional new titles are the 2003 Detroit & Wayne County Street Guide and 2003 Oakland & Macomb Counties Street Guide. Rand McNally EasyFinder® laminated maps and fold maps for southeast Michigan have been updated with enhanced cartography and a bold new cover design.

The 2003 Detroit Tri-County & Vicinity Street Guide has a suggested retail price of $29.95. Street Guides and other new maps are available at the Rand McNally Map & Travel Store at The Somerset Collection in Troy, at major retailers across the tri-county area, and on randmcnally.com.

About Rand McNally

Rand McNally & Company, founded in 1856, is America's indispensable travel guide, providing mapping, routing and trip-planning tools for the consumer, business, education and commercial transportation markets. The company produces print and electronic products featuring national and local maps for the United States and Canada, including the Rand McNally Road Atlas and Thomas Guides. Rand McNally offers trip planning on randmcnally.com and operates retail stores across the United States. For more information, call (800) 333-0136 or visit www.randmcnally.com.

Editor's Note: Artwork and samples are available on request by contacting Christina Morris at PAN Communications at 978/474-1900, or randmcnally@pancomm.com.

PageFinder and EasyFinder are registered trademarks of Rand McNally & Company.

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Produced for Rand McNally & Company

Contacts:

PAN Communications
978-474-1900
randmcnally@pancomm.com

Rand McNally
847-329-6798
jchrzastek@randmcnally.com

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