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Digital advertising coming to roads near you
Two roads could become test areas for digital advertising in Bristol after the cabinet gave approval for the sites in the Temple Way underpass and on Bond Street near Cabot Circus.
It is thought that advertising from the two sites by JC Decaux could generate several million pounds for the council over the next few years if the schemes are approved by planners.
The issue is a contentious one, however, with a representative from Bristol Civic Society addressing the cabinet meeting on Tuesday evening with his concerns and Green Party councillors also speaking up against the plans.
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In a statement, the Civic Society said they were “shocked and dismayed” by the plans. John Payne said: “We ask Bristol not to emulate London where there is a gaudy array of these signs.”
After Rob Telford spoke from the floor of the council chamber, his Green colleague Daniella Radice, who now sits at the cabinet table, reiterated her commitment to remove all street advertising – a platform of hers when she ran for mayor in 2012.
She said: “Adverts for consumer goods have a negative affect on people’s lives. As a council, we should not be profiting from this. I lament the loss of public space driven by the austerity agenda that this represents.”
Mayor George Ferguson also said that he was not a fan of advertising and would not be “splattering the city”, but added: “This is good for Bristol at a time when we are at desperate need to find additional forms of revenue.”
Photo of Cromwell Road in London by JC Decaux
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