Letters to the Editor: Hey, Metro, no one wants more digital ads in L.A.
To the editor: The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s plan for massive digital signs in the city of L.A. is a disaster in the making and has no prospect for addressing public safety or bottlenecks.
L.A. drivers do not need one more distraction, as we already contend with speeding drivers, motorists using their phones, distracted pedestrians, a shortage of bike lanes, weaving scooter users and unhoused people occasionally wandering into traffic.
Nor do we need multiplying digital billboard images — we’re already deluged with ads on the internet, TV, radio and in print media.
Metro, get your priorities straight and focus on real solutions to address traffic flow, public safety and the aesthetics of our city.
Bridget McCarthy, Los Angeles
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To the editor: Are we really going back there? We as a community have been fighting these billboards for decades. Metro has a flimsy explanation for how this is a safety measure, which it is not. It’s a bright, moving distraction for drivers.
We have a current billboard rule in place, but let’s not try and fool anyone — this is about money. Money at the expense of safety. And it’s wrong.
Signing off on this idea was the first bad move that our new mayor has made. I hope the Metro board reconsiders this horrible idea, or the courts see through this ruse.
Mindy Taylor-Ross, Venice
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To the editor: The news that the city of Los Angeles is considering allowing Metro to put up billboard-sized displays that will also show ads suggests a primary reason is that this will generate up to $500 million over 20 years, or up to $25 million annually.
Given the size of L.A. and its budget, why would anyone add these glaring monstrosities to our streets for such a paltry sum? It can’t be for the money, for this isn’t much. And to remove only two square feet of existing non-electronic billboards for every one square foot of new digital space is an example of horrible and weak negotiation.
Our city needs to beautify with more nature, fewer digital distractions and fewer ads. Stop this crazy scheme before it goes any further.
Ben Tenn, Northridge
