Both 道（dao) and 路（lu) mean the same thing: 'road', 'route', 'path‘ or 'way'.  But they should be different if we have a closed look at their structures. 

About 道：the main part is 首 which presents 'head’.  Why？ 自 mean ‘self' that looks like the head, chest and stomach；then what is the top of 首? The component seems like the beautiful long horns of the male deer.  The man with ’crown‘ must be the head of a group of people.  Normally 首 means ’head'. Here it should refer to ‘a powerful head' with which you can find a way to solve some problem.   The remaining part of 道 is the simple form of 走(walk) which dot looks like the head and the middle curved component symbols the main part of the body and the bottom shows the foot stretching forward for walking.  In general the word 道 tells us that ‘A man should choose his road with the head’.  In other words we should walk with deep thought (thinking)! 

路:  Its first part is another form of ’足‘, 口 represents ’a man' with two legs and feet.  Obviously the bottom of 足 emphasizes the ‘foot’; The top of 各 is the changed form of 文 that represents ‘a man' with wide shoulders and long legs. So 各 should represent ’two persons' or different people. In china we have a famous saying：”There was no way in world. But so many people have stepped  in the same place where a path has been formed！”  ‘The road was created by the public feet!”

(To be continued)