My Idea For Extra $$$ For Metro

[GovernorAggie]

A few months back in a transportation thread, I mentioned the idea of METRO selling naming rights to its transit lines and stations. Well look who beat Houston to that idea:

From ESPN.com:

...The New York City subways are headed in that direction. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority recently approved a two-year deal that could lead to companies putting their corporate names on subway stations, lines, tunnels and bridges.

And the link to the story:

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/sportsbusin...tory?id=1984997

Now, I remember the reception to corporate naming of METRO's lines being a very cool one--not to attractive to have the Continental line running between downtown and IAH. But now, since New York is doing it, is it suddenly a cool thing to do? We all know how urbanists follow trends--with NYC being the biggie. Is it a good idea for METRO now?

[The Great Hizzy!]

The idea isn't new at all, as they considered doing the same for the rail stations in Miami. The problem here, though, is the same as it is for advertising on METRO vehicles: there's nothing stopping Treasure's Adult Entertainment from competing and bidding for the naming rights to a METRO rail station. And METRO has to award naming rights fairly (that is, without bias).

[kjb434]

Imagine getting on the Zone D'Erotica line from uptown to downtown!

I think some aspects of the advertising can be censored. I'm typically a person completely opposed to censoring anything, but METRO might have some rights to prevent adult entertainment venues from advertising. After all, the US government got smoking to stop television advertising and now restricts most other advertising for them. And only recently has hard liquor started advertising on TV after the industry lifted a self imposed ban.

The awarding of the naming rights is not purely based on the amount bid for the space. Metro can impose other qualifications that limit the business that can accquire the rights. This can be done in several legal ways to avoid a bias against adult enternment businesses.

[Guest danax]

Easy for me to sit here and say we shouldn't but I like the geographical/landmark station names. Is NY going to add the locations names along with the corporate ones? Otherwise it would be difficult to know where you are. I guess they figure everyone will get used to it, and it would be constantly changing too, I suppose, like Enron Field.

Let's not be such whores if at all possible.

[ssullivan]

I read in the Chronicle yesterday that Metro is considering a plan to allow a private company to build and maintain bus shelters in exchange for the rights to place advertising in the bus shelters. Apparently Metro is the only system in the top 10 metropolitan areas in the country with no paid advertising anywhere in the system.

I'm not opposed to an advertising board (I imagine it would be similar to advertising boards you see in the middle of malls or at bus/train stops in other cities). However I hope we never get to the point of ads on the sides of buses or trains -- I think that's tacky and cheap looking. I also dislike the idea of selling naming rights to a station or a line. That makes it very difficult to know where that station is located geographically. For instance, the Hermann Park/Rice U. Metrorail stop gives riders a very good idea of where that stop is. Renaming it the "Dynegy stop" tells you nothing. Now locals would catch on quickly but to visitors it would make no sense. Another example - I'm going to Boston in a couple of weeks. I've been many times before and know the subway system fairly well; well enough to know if I want to go to Copley Square I can take the green line to the Copley station. The orange line Back Bay stop will also get me there. However, if suddenly those stops were sold to companies and became the ChevronTexaco and American Airlines stops, they would be of little value to me in determining their proximity to the neighborhood I want to visit.

Besides, I like the fact that there are a few things left that don't have paid corporate sponsorship, since almsot everything else these days does.

[GovernorAggie]

Well I think that it is an idea to at least give more thought to here. Maybe not a "Southwest Airlines" line, but maybe the Southwest Airlines Blue Line or The Blue Line, sponsored by Southwest Airlines.

Same thing for the stops. Texas Medical Center stop could be Medical Center/University, sponsored by BCBS of Texas.

The biggest problem IMO is that those station and rail line names could become a mouthful.