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About Digital Vancouver

 

  

Astral Out-of-Home

Vancouver Digital Network

 

 

Where will the digital boards be installed?

 

  • The nine 10’ x 34’ digital faces will be installed on Squamish Nation land in Vancouver, West Vancouver, North Vancouver District and Squamish. The signs will be situated at six sites near the Burrard Bridge in Vancouver, the Lions Gate Bridge in West Vancouver, the Second Narrows Bridge in North Vancouver and the Sea to Sky Highway en route to Whistler.

 

When will the digital boards be installed?

 

  • Astral Out-of-Home recently launched Canada’s first national Digital Network by expanding its innovative technology in Vancouver, to complement ten digital boards already operating in Montreal and three digital boards in Toronto. The nine digital boards in Vancouver are expected to be fully operational in December, 2009.

 

What are the specifications of the digital boards?

 

  • The digital boards measure three metres (10 feet) high by 10 metres (34 feet) wide. The average height of the boards is 9 metres (30 feet) with the exception of one board measuring 18 metres (61 feet).

 

What do the digital boards look like?

 

  • The digital boards are state of the art in their design, technology and construction, and we believe, a significant visual improvement over older billboards. The LED digital technology is specifically designed to provide a clear, precise reproduction of still pictures or advertising artwork. They will not display live video or animation. They do not animate, flash or move.

 

How many advertisements will they display?

 

  • The digital boards display six static advertising messages that change every 10 seconds. Since the billboards can be instantly updated, they can be used by the City of Vancouver or Police to immediately communicate emergency messages including AMBER Alerts, and traffic safety warnings.

 

Will the digital boards increase driver distraction?

 

  • The digital boards display up to six static advertising messages. They do not animate, flash or move.

 

  • There have been a number of research studies conducted concerning driver distraction where LED digital boards have been in operation for a period of time. There is no evidence to indicate that a digital board contributes to increased driver distraction.

 

  • In fact, the Federal Department of Indian and Northern Affairs approved the Squamish Nation billboards and ruled they would not increase driver distraction nor be detrimental to the environment (August 2009).

 

Will the digital boards contribute to light pollution?

 

  • The LED lights on the digital board’s project forwards or horizontally rather than light vertically as found on conventional outdoor signs, thereby reducing light pollution. Also, the ambient light levels of the LED digital boards are lower than found on standard conventional billboards.

 

  • The light levels on the digital boards automatically adjust to match existing natural light conditions. For example, at night the lighting is dimmed to 10% of daytime levels.

 

Are the digital boards environmentally-friendly?  

 

  • Digital boards are the most environmentally-friendly outdoor display technology available today. With programmable digital technology, there is no use of ink, glues, paper or vinyl, which eliminates the energy and CO2 emissions that would be required to produce these materials.

 

  • Since the advertising displayed on the digital boards is managed remotely, there is no need for sign installation or frequent on-site maintenance, which reduces greenhouse gas emissions linked to transportation by 75 per cent.

Do digital boards consume more electricity than conventional billboards?

 

  • Digital outdoor billboards consume slightly more electricity than conventional billboards; however, LED lighting is very energy efficient and the ambient light levels of the LED digital billboards are lower than found on standard conventional billboards.

 

  • The light levels on the digital boards automatically adjust to match existing natural light conditions. For example, at night the lighting is dimmed to 10% of daytime levels.

 

Will these signs be operational before the 2010 Vancouver Olympics?

 

  • Yes. These signs are expected to be fully operational in December, 2009.

 

Will there be more signs to follow?

 

  • Currently, Astral Out-of-Home’s contract with the Squamish Nation is to build and operate nine digital signs in six locations on their behalf.