04 March 2010

Billboard Luddites In Denver

A group called Scenic Colorado has organized in Denver mostly, it seems, to push for a ban on electronic billboards that the City and County of Denver is considering acting as an ordinance.

Earlier this week, I got a flyer for them, warning me that without my action, billboards everywhere could be replaced with electric ones.

My reaction? "So what?"

There is an electric billboard right outside my Cherry Creek office. It isn't any more or less noticeable than the non-electric one that was there before, except that the advertising changes more often, so it isn't as boring. Presumably, it also puts some people in business of printing overside billboard posters and the people who put them up on polls out of work. But, I really see no way to care one way or the other and simply do not see what is so noxious about this new technology.

Their FAQ is singularly unconvincing.

There may be an argument for limiting the locations where billboards can be put, but there is no legitimate reasons to prevent billboards from being electronic in places where ordinary billboards once went.

2 comments:

BSR said...

To me they seem much brighter than traditional billboards, and therefore they are more of a distraction while driving. Other than that, there isn't much difference. I dislike billboards as a rule, so I'm inclined to dislike them more as their intensity increases.

What I REALLY dislike while driving are the moving/flashing/animated billboards that I've seen in some areas (not any that I remember around Denver). They are much more distracting, even though I make an effort to not look at them as I'm driving. At night, I consider them a real hazard, as it can be hard to see anything else around these overly-bright screens.

Mishalak said...

I largely agree with what BSR has said. I also feel mildly inclined against them due to their electrical usage during the day when a traditional billboard would not be adding to the load on the grid. I don't know that it is enough of a reason to ban them, but I certainly would be for a tax on all advertising billboards not associated with an adjacent business. Though, of course, such a tax would be impractical due to TABOR.