Constraints of cartography: low budget financing, constraining research and production activities; lack of proper state geodetic and cartographic supervision due to outdated legislation, which leads to low quality of cartographic products that do not meet the required accuracy and reliability; appearance in theoretical cartography pseudoscientific trends and directions («multiscale», «neogeography») as a result of the introduction of new techniques and methods of processing space-based information, denying the need for the creation of topographic and thematic maps and plans. Topographic and thematic maps are geographical information systems, since they represent not only the spatial information and the exact characteristics of objects, phenomena, processes, identified by specialists using field survey (decoding) received from organizations and agencies on specific topics, in the form documents and displayed on the map based on using symbols and digital characteristics of a certain scale. All this defines the mapping as the basis and foundation for the further development of the geographic information system of higher class.