Antelope Valley Transit Authority Small transit system 50 miles north of Los Angeles basin

Fleet of 75 buses and 3.6 million boardings annually

1,200 square mile service area

Digital Bus Advertising The Concept

Ad agency wanted to attract national advertisers

Plan was to sell digital ad as a compliment to a full bus wrap

Estimated revenue -$15,000 per month

Wooing National Advertisers

Digital Bus Advertising The Investment

Illuminated sign cost $50,000

Plan was to recoup investment in one year

Sign is estimated to have a ten year life

5-year warranty

California State Law

Illegal to have illuminated advertising signs on buses except for headway signs

State legislation was passed allowing AVTA to install 20 digital signs through 2020

Program’s Legislative Intent?

Purpose: Evaluate the impact of digital bus signs on traffic and pedestrian safety

Reporting: AVTA required to provide a report on traffic impact at end of pilot

Legislative Hurdles

AVTA pilot hinged on UC Irvine’s progress.

UC Irvine pilot program allowed 12 digital signs

Legislators opposed to the project argued only one pilot program was needed

Procurement

Sole source contract with MultimediaLED

AVTA agreed to purchase sign

after ad agency secured a 12-month advertising contract

UC Irvine was close to unveiling its digital bus sign

Client insisted on being first

Digital Sign Specifications

LED illumination is extremely bright

The digital sign is 12’ x 2’- a standard king banner size with dynamic messaging

The LED sign is available in 8mm or 10mm resolution with a 160 degree viewing angle

Permits full motion video and animation

Installation Challenges

Important to ensure flat adherence to minimize vibrations and maximize air cooling

The digital sign runs completely off the bus’ power

AVTA installed sign on an MCI commuter coach

Unveiling Ceremony

AVTA sign unveiling ceremony took place April 6

Strongly attended by elected officials and supported by CHP

Excellent press coverage

Operational Challenges

It’s illegal for the sign to page or video to play while on the freeway

Digital signs cannot scroll on the freeway so GPS tracking is essential

Bus operator pre-checks crashing the system

Smooth Sailing Since July

Now considering a second digital sign for our local transit fleet

We have budgeted funds to purchase three additional signs

No accidents to report at this time

Actual Revenue VS Expenses

Year to date revenue is $68,000

AVTA has recouped $30,600 of its $50,000 investment

Not likely to recoup

investment in first year

Digital Bus Advertising