Returning students and incoming freshmen alike have no doubt already noticed that many of the Madison Metro System's buses are (still) brandishing the fully-wrapping advertisements. However, much to the dismay of many Madison residents, the City Council voted in early July to not only keep these ads around, but also to double the number of ad-wrapped buses.
Just what is the reasoning behind such a decision, many ask? With the economy in the state it is right now, and the ever-increasing price of gas, the metro system has found it increasingly difficult to stay afloat in such times and has turned to advertising for third-party companies to supplement its dwindling revenue.
As many City Council members reasoned, either the buses could carry advertisements or several of the lesser used routes were going to be cut. However, wrapping ads around metro buses is not the solution to increasing revenue for Madison Metro and will cause more problems than it solves.
Many metro riders have voiced several complaints against these advertisements, and some have gone so far as to boycott the metro system, as people point out that the ads make seeing through the windows (especially at night or during rain or snow) particularly difficult. Others just argue that the ads themselves are gaudy, or even cause feelings of claustrophobia inside the buses.
Regardless of the complaint, Madison Metro is worsening the quality of their service by keeping the advertisements around and thus lowering the number of its riders. As fewer riders equal less fares collected, and less fares equal less revenue, what will the Metro use to cover the lessening revenue? More wrap-around bus ads? Ultimately, the City Council has put Madison Metro into a vicious cycle of lower ridership by deciding to keep these advertisements around.
Though many riders have complained about such advertisements, safety is still the number-one concern for metro users. However, when safety is the number-one worry on the buses, why are we restricting the ability to see into the buses with these ads? They impair almost any visibility into buses from the outside, not only at night but also during the day. Not being able to see out the windows to find your stop is one thing, but not being able to see a crime occurring inside a bus is completely different and could potentially endanger lives. These ads provide perfect concealment for those wishing to perform illicit acts on the bus without drawing attention from outside.
With the massive amounts of bikers and pedestrians roving about on the streets of Madison (not to mention the countless numbers of cars and trucks), do drivers need yet another distraction on the roads? While it could be argued that these wrap-around ads are intended for pedestrians and others in more stationary locations, there is no doubt that these 'moving billboards' are constantly being noticed and distracting drivers. While this may not be the biggest concern about these advertisements, it still is a viable problem.
However, a solution to Madison Metro's economic woes is not as simple as many people would like to think. Some suggested alternative solutions include wrapping other public service vehicles, such as police cars, fire engines and garbage collection trucks. While placing advertisements on police and fire vehicles would pose other obvious safety issues, what sort of company would want to be associated with trucks that not only reek of garbage and waste but are also filled with it? No, unfortunately we cannot just magically solve the metro's economic woes by wrapping public property with advertisements.
Instead of looking for a way to increase revenue, Madison Metro should be looking at ways to decrease costs - without necessarily cutting routes. All too often I see an empty bus idling on the side of the road for five or 10 minutes. I understand that sometimes drivers leave the bus to switch places with a different driver or take a short break, but why can't they turn off the bus while it is just sitting there? It would save only a little in gas, but with the price of gas the way it is, every little bit counts.
No doubt more abstract solutions could be thought up, but regardless of the means to save on costs and increase revenue, those wrap-around ads need to go.
Ryan Dashek is a junior majoring in biology. Please send responses to opinion@dailycardinal.com.
