Comments on: Times kinda sorta supports naming rights deal

By: Alon Levy

Alon Levy — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 15:19:34 +0000

Unfortunately, the only thing the community groups and the elite reformers agree on is that tourists are bad people. They walk slowly! They look up to see buildings! They don’t know the subway map by heart!

By: Alon Levy

Alon Levy — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 15:17:50 +0000

I see them all the time on the 1. Maybe the R just doesn’t get those ads.

By: Alon Levy

Alon Levy — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 15:16:39 +0000

The MTA’s getting $100 million for Atlantic Yards, plus $4 million for the naming rights. The property is valued at $200 million. Hence, the MTA is essentially selling it for -$96 million.

By: StationStops

StationStops — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 16:50:23 +0000

This is a bad idea, similar to the confusion embraced by visitors when they reach the north end of the FDR and attempt to locate the exit for the Triborough bridge (labelled now only as the ‘RFK Bridge’).

Ironically, if you are coming south on I-95, its labelled as the Triborough, so, not only confusing, but not even consistent.

NYC is a tourist destination, you can’t make transit labels so easily subject to change. Every day there are thousands of people who have never been here before with their 2007 Fodor’s guide or whatever.

By: StreetsPariah

StreetsPariah — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 05:05:51 +0000

The Portland Streetcar has a form of sponsorship on its stops. The automated announcement says, if I recall correctly as it’s been a while, “This is 11th and Glisan, sponsored by [some company adjacent to the stop].” I didn’t find this annoying at all. The intersection was named so I still knew where I was. Now as for the pokey speed of the streetcar…

By: rhywun

rhywun — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 02:47:08 +0000

Yes it is. And if Barclay’s decided to have an actual presence at that intersection beyond a name–or even managed a “Barclay’s Square”–I might relent. One should remember that in 1904 newspapers were an institution–much more so than now. The only other corporate examples that predominate these days are sports teams–also institutions. A financial services provider than no one in this city has ever heard of–not so much.

By: rhywun

rhywun — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 02:41:03 +0000

I’ve never noticed a Continental ad. That’s money well spent!

By: rhywun

rhywun — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 02:38:15 +0000

It just rolls off the tongue, doesn’t it. I bet 1/2 to 3/4 of subway announcers will not add the required “Barclays” when they announce it.

By: SEAN

SEAN — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 01:38:18 +0000

True, but to avoid the corporate nonsence it is better I think to allow each station to go to a local community group or follow the examples I posted above with the Port authority or the Yankees & Mets.

At major transfer stations you could have a corporate sponcer such as Barns & Noble at Union Square. The money goes to station upkeep, safety & the like.

Does anyone realize just how much Contenental Airlines alone must be spending on ads in the MTA system? There ads are everywhere you look. So why on some level cant the MTA adopt some steady stream of income with naming rights.

By: Ed

Ed — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 00:23:30 +0000

Why not sell the naming rights for the entire subway system?

So the subway system would be called the “JP Morgan Subway System” or whatever. You put the company’s name and logo on all the maps. However, riders would be confronted with the advertising only when they looked at a map.

You could potentially raise alot of money this way.