Just how savvy are you when it comes to reading a map? It turns out that if you are aged between eighteen and twenty four then perhaps that is a skill that you lack as a whopping 85% admit that they don't know how to read one.

Motoring on Female First

Motoring on Female First

It seems that technology is to blame for the lack of map reading skills amongst the younger generation as most people now use their smartphones to find out where they are going.

It was around 6 years ago that maps became available for mobile, revolutionising the way we navigated. Now, around 45% of 18-24 year olds utilise maps on their smartphone to navigate and a third (32%) are totally reliant on the internet to find their way around in a new place.

Although it seems it's not only map reading that is becoming a lost skill, as millions of UK drivers admitted they wouldn't feel confident getting to a destination by reading road signs (85%).

So just how much do you rely on technology and the internet to get you around? Would you be able to read a conventional map?

Marcus Thielking, Managing Director of Telenav GmbH said: "With so many people now lacking confidence in reading maps or road signs, we can see how problems can arise when you lose connection and can't access satnav on your smartphone - services like this that were previously taken for granted suddenly become all but useless, which could leave people in a tight spot. It's the reason we developed Scout.

"Map reading skills are no longer passed down from parents and are not included in driving tests, so it's no surprise that the majority of 18-24 year olds can't read a map.

The survey was done by Telenav, developers of Scout - a free satnav app.


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