Transit Ads Take Off

Transit advertising never really left, but its use has increased as mass transit gained riders in recent years. In NYC, transit ad possibilities include displays atop station entrances, as shown here, plus posters in stations, posters in subway cars/city buses/suburban commuter trains, and billboards along subway rights-of-way.

In London, transit advertisers have many of the same display possibilities plus the opportunity to make a huge impact by being the sole advertiser on an entire platform, a single station stop, or a particular Underground subway line. Many taxis and buses are wrapped in ads, making them moving "billboards" for goods and services.

Does transit advertising work? A London Metropolitan Business School master's degree candidate concludes that it's especially effective when a single advertiser wraps an entire vehicle (see above) and when the advertiser needs to cut through clutter to reach commuters during rush hour.

For photos of transit ads around the world, try Flickr or Google images.