New High Tech Ads In Blue Line Tunnel

By Rachelle Bowden in News on May 31, 2005 11:28AM

Here's a way for the CTA to make some dough - New York's got them, Hong Kong's got them, and we think our friend said he saw them on Boston's T. They're the next new "thing" in advertising to people riding the train - Subway Tunnel Commercials. Riders on the Blue Line should look out for 15 second ads for Target near the Clark & Lake stop.

The ads work like a big 'ol flip book. There are individual backlit pictures that look animated when the train blasts by. On the Blue Line, riders will see images like a kayaker paddling through a stream of Target logos and a woman sprinkling Target bulls-eye logos from a garden hose.

The ads will change every month. Ads in the Blue Line queue include bits for Hummer, Land Rover, and this fall's TV shows. No word on whether the ads will be put in other CTA line tunnels.

For this advertising, the CTA gets paid a monthly fee for use of the tunnel and also gets a percentage of the advertising revenue. This might not be enough to bail the CTA out, but every little bit helps, right?

Chicagoist rode the Blue Line through the Clark/Lake stop yesterday and unless we're completely blind, the Target ads aren't in the tunnel yet. Has anyone else seen them?

Image via Submedia video capture.