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Are Digital Billboards a Dangerous Distraction to Drivers?

by Amar Toor on March 2, 2010 at 01:55 PM

You've put your cell phone on silent. The iPod's tucked away in your bag. You've even turned off that fancy new digital dashboard in your car. Basically, you've taken every conceivable precaution to defuse any devices that may siphon your attention from the road. But what do you do when the road becomes a distraction, itself?

While evidence is still pretty scant, a growing number of activists and highway safety experts have recently expressed concerns about high-tech highway displays. With bright and constantly changing ads, seemingly harmless roadside advertisements, could, as Scenic Mission director Abby Dart says, quickly become "weapons of mass distraction."

Needless to say, those behind the billboard market beg to differ. Industry heads point out, in their defense, that there haven't been any scientifically conclusive studies linking digital ads to roadway danger, and as flashy as the spots are, they don't involve video. Billboard companies, as the New York Times reports, also happen to make a lot of money off of the rotating digital displays, which can be sold to multiple advertisers.

The Federal Highway Administration is currently conducting a study of the dangers that digital billboards may pose, and should complete said study this summer. We'll hold off, then, on casting any stones until we see more evidence. It's critically important, however, that future studies find a way to locate some sort of isolated "billboard effect" to gauge against other comparable freeway distractions. Only when policy makers have an estimate of how dangerous billboards are by themselves, and how dangerous they are when mixed in with other variables, will they be able to make any qualified decision. [From: New York Times]

Tags: advertising, billboards, car, driving, driving distractions, DrivingDistractions, electronic billboards, ElectronicBillboards, safety, top

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