The Birmingham City Council will vote on a moratorium on all electronic signs, on Tuesday April 24. As you can see from my previous posts, digital signs (especially the huge Jumbotron billboards) can be serious driver distractions, as well as making a neighborhood look like Times Square or the Vegas Strip.
A lot of other cities have put moratoriums on digital boards until they can decide if they want these kinds of signs, and what restrictions to put on them. Atlanta and Tuscaloosa have moratoriums. The governor of Rhode Island has stopped all digital billboard permits until they can decide if they want any more.
The main issue is - who do we want making the decisions about giant TV screens looming above our highways? Do we want the sign companies deciding (which is what in effect is happening now) or do we want our elected officials (and that means we, the citizens) to decide? The first step is to not allow any more to go up while the people's elected representatives consider the situation.
Birmingham residents can attend the Council meeting, which starts at 9:30 a.m. at Birmingham City Hall on Tuesday. If you can't go, please email me or post a comment here, and I'll make sure the Council gets it.
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