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MBTA rolling out digital ad boards at subway-station entrances

By adamg on Thu, 03/14/2024 - 11:52am


Ad:


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Comments

By BethC on Thu, 03/14/2024 - 12:23pm.

I just finished a trip to Portugal and Spain. Not only did I never have to wait more than 10 minutes for a bus, even on a Sunday, but every stop had small but effective digital boards announcing the real-time arrival of the upcoming buses.

We get ads.

Sigh.

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By ScottB on Thu, 03/14/2024 - 7:16pm.

At busy stops. I've seen one on Broadway in Everett, for example.

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By Will on Thu, 03/14/2024 - 7:49pm.

are displayed at the corner of Mass Ave and Harrison, too.

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By sartreswaiter on Fri, 03/15/2024 - 6:28am.

Seriously a high school kid with a Raspberry Pi and some LCD monitors could probably rig up a system 1000 times better than the system the MBTA uses. (And the MBTA's system probably costs10,000x times more).

There's basically not a single country or city in the world I've been to with public transit that has worse digital signage than Boston. Portugal and Spain included naturally. But even like, Buenos Ares or many cities with tiny fractions of the budget and technical resources of Boston.

The horribleness of the signage is to me one of the most flabbergasting details of the entire T. And there's a lot to be flabbergasted by. Primarily because it seems like new technology and things like, I don't know. The Internet. Should make these signs cost almost nothing to replace.

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By anon on Fri, 03/15/2024 - 9:57am.

sophisticated comments on uhub. Sarcasm off.

Most of the MBTA's current problems are related to corruption (known and tolerated by every political party, including "progressive"), the diasterous results of the multi-year COVID lockdown (including the loss through retirement, etc.,) of T employees who were intimately familiar with the system, and their replacement with people who are on a learning curve. Management who are told to terrorize employees if they go 2 miles over the speed limit, close the door when someone carelessly gets their arm stuck in it, people who fall/jump in front of trains, the list is endless. Someone triggered making BS complaints. The humongous federal deficits (all parties are to blame) and money spent on endless wars instead of on our infrastructure.

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By anon on Thu, 03/14/2024 - 12:30pm.

In the good old days the MBTA installed hundreds of television monitors on subway platforms to entertain and spread positive MBTA stories. The program didn't last too long because of public outrage over privacy concerns.

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By lbb on Thu, 03/14/2024 - 4:49pm.

because of public outrage over privacy concerns

Cite?

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By M. Sanchez on Thu, 03/14/2024 - 12:52pm.

Can the signs be placed inside the MA State House to let the useless MA State Legislators know that we have a public transit system that doesn’t work?

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By StillFromDorchester on Thu, 03/14/2024 - 4:29pm.

Of their biggest donors on their back.

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By BostonDog on Thu, 03/14/2024 - 4:24pm.

The north side Kenmore Sq entrance has had a digital sign like that for years. It mostly shows ads and occasionally the upcoming train information.

I've wondered why those aren't more widespread. As advertising goes, isn't not nearly as bad as the huge stand alone signs that get planted in the sidewalk.

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By CH on Thu, 03/14/2024 - 7:46pm.

OL Tufts and GLE Prudential have had external signs for a while now too. They could be improved, but occasional street-level train info is better than nothing.

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By Will on Thu, 03/14/2024 - 7:56pm.

It's more than annoying to be rushing to a spot that does have a display and find advertising in place of train info. Not only do I have to wait here outside the Tufts Med Center orange line station for the silver line, but I have to wait for the ads to run through their cycle before I get enough info to tell whether to walk or wait. Or as I rush to Back Bay Station, can I relax because the next Oak Grove train is 8 minutes away or rush inside and down the escalator to catch it? The ads deny me that info. Advertising is the enemy of good info.

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By Bostoneer on Fri, 03/15/2024 - 9:04am.

Putting up electric ads but no electronic signs saying when the next train is coming is misguided.

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By Tim Mc. on Fri, 03/15/2024 - 6:19pm.

« In addition to 7.5-second ads, the board would also feature supposed real-time subway information. »

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By AdamA on Fri, 03/15/2024 - 12:27pm.

They definitely need one at Porter. Several times I took the abyss escalator down to find a 20+ wait time. With the sign I can grab a bus.

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By coffeeweasel on Fri, 03/15/2024 - 3:43pm.

I propose an exchange program: for every one of these signs they put up that spends more time displaying ads than displaying useful next train/next bus info, one ad is removed from South Station. If they can't unblock the windows, at least they can do away with some of the ads.

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By Tim Mc. on Fri, 03/15/2024 - 6:20pm.

If I don't have advertisements covering at least 5% of my visual field at all times, I start to hyperventilate.

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By Lee on Sat, 03/16/2024 - 8:41am.

..: on Washington St are very annoyingly long and the train and bus info is too short.
Irritating when you’d like to know which will come sooner.

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