Electronic reader boards called a safety hazard

Dominic Cuccia can flash some catchy digital images and text messages across the sign outside his drive-through car wash/Italian eatery business on North Oak Trafficway.
One shows a car getting showered with water and then brushed. Seconds later, the sign reads “Dominic’s Mom is back in the Kitchen.” On another day, the sign reminds passersby that the car wash will be open on Labor Day.
“The things I can do with this reader board are unlimited,” Cuccia said, “and there is no more going outside and putting up a (manual) display board in bad weather.”
Cuccia is among a growing number of business owners who are advertising their products through outdoor electronic, or LED, reader boards.
Once found in only a handful of places, reader boards — described by a sign industry Web site as “the town crier of the modern age”— are popping up in large number, at least in cities where they are allowed.
Businesses like to use reader boards because they can flash several different messages in a minute’s time and their LED technology has become cheaper in the past decade.
“I am guessing that there are probably 10 times more reader boards out there than there used to be 10 years ago,” said Mark Bourgart, president of Infinity Sign Systems, which installs reader boards.
But officials in some cities want nothing to do the phenomenon. They contend that the electronic message boards are not only unattractive but also a dangerous distraction to drivers.
They cite studies by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that concluded that taking one’s eyes off the road for more than two seconds significantly increases the chances of having an accident.
“They are ugly, offensive and even more in-your-face than billboards,” said Tom Nelson, a local architect who serves on the board of Scenic America, a national nonprofit group that opposes outdoor advertising.
Digital displays are allowed in most commercial areas of Kansas City, except for specially planned areas such as Zona Rosa.
Leaders in Gladstone, where Cuccia’s business is located, have similar concerns and have formed a committee to review the city’s sign ordinance.
On the 3.5-mile stretch of North Oak Trafficway that runs through Gladstone, there are 10 electronic message boards.
“I don’t want Gladstone looking like Times Square,” said Councilman Mark Revenaugh said. “We are trying very hard to keep Gladstone from having the appearance of an aging community. These reader boards detract from our effort to move this city forward.”
Several cities in the metropolitan area either prohibit electronic signs or impose heavy restrictions on them.
Independence, for instance, prohibits such signs in its growing retail district near Interstate 70 and Missouri 291 but allows it elsewhere, said Stuart Borders, a senior planner for the city.
Borders estimated that there are about a dozen electronic reader boards on Noland Road. But like other cities, Independence has regulations, he said.
Bourgart, whose sign company has been installing digital reader monuments for several CVS drug stores in the area, said businesses have found that reader boards are an effective advertising medium.
“Because so many people have TiVo or satellite radio at home, they don’t have to watch or listen to commercials, so companies have to find new ways to get the message out to their clientele,” he said.
Bourgart added that when CVS puts in a message board at one of its stores, retail sales at that location rise from 17 percent to 40 percent. That, in turn, increases sales tax revenue for the city.
Cuccia, who spent $30,000 on his electronic reader board sign, agreed that they help draw business.
He said he thinks the sign is tasteful and also disputed claims that such signs distract motorists.
“Anything can distract a driver,” he said.
But Nelson of Scenic America said he was awaiting a study by the Federal Highway Administration that will examine the safety issues related to electronic signs.
“One of these days, someone will die because of these reader boards,” he said. “I hope it doesn’t happen, but I fear that it could.”

Source: The Kansas City Star By MIKE RICE