Consistent advertising

Have you driven on motorways and seen those adverts in farmers' fields? I am told that it is very distracting for drivers if they are on motorways and suddenly they see an advert. However it isn't a distraction if that advert is on private land and placed on something that is mobile like the side of a van. Now you are probably thinking like me, that it makes no difference whether the advert is permanent or temporary, they are both distracting. There is a loophole in the law which means that drivers may have their attention diverted and accidents may happen. Well you either believe that the risk is high and you ban advertising or you allow it.

The reason for today's blog is that this week I have seen adverts hanging from lamp-posts advertising the TV digital switchover in November. If you haven't read about it in the papers or seen the adverts on TV, there will be a booklet coming through your door. If all else fails you can ask someone when you find your TV doesn't work. A couple of years ago this type of advert was used for local music concerts and plays. It was a great method of advertising and I still miss them. However they were stopped for reasons of safety. Well there may have been accidents caused by these signs but I never read about any. The point is that this sort of decision should be left to local people. There are distractions wherever you drive and some may be more hazardous than others. It may even be the case that these adverts on lamposts were dangerous a few years ago but they are not dangerous any more.

I am not convinced that adverts are dangerous but let's have consistency in decision making whether it is at the side of a motorway or in the centre of Lancaster.

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