Route maps: A study of travellers' perceptions of a section of countryside

Two hundred and sixty-two travellers staying in caravan parks and who had completed a 340 km trip in North Queensland, Australia, were asked to draw a route map of their journey. The subjects' sex and age were recorded and they were asked for their state of origin, recency of the journey, previous travel over the route and their role as either a passenger or driver. The maps were scored for the number of landmarks, districts, paths, social comments, texture and three measures of orientation. Chi-square analyses revealed that drivers were better oriented than passengers, older subjects made more errors in labelling the landmarks but also produced more general comments (texture score) and subjects who had completed the trip more recently drew more paths. Travellers from the distant southern states also made more labelling errors and fewer general comments on the route. Travellers who had been over the route more often gained a significantly higher correct orientation score than first time or second time travellers. Overall, interaction effects among the main independent variables were not significant. No sex differences in orientation were apparent. It was argued that an understanding of the social, experiential side of leisure driving, using techniques such as the present study, is important for understanding this high energy consuming leisure activity.