The Bus Ad versus no Ad Debate Flares in Whatcom County

The Bellingham Herald Transportation Blog reports that the Whatcom Transportation Authority (WTA) Board rejected a contract that would have increased the agencies' ad revenues from $35,000 to $90,000.  A few years ago a similar debate flared up in King County over the prolific expansion of their bus wrapping program.  While transit agencies only get a small fraction of their budgets from advertising, it seems to me that any thing that can keep buses running on the streets during this funding crisis is a good thing.  I don't know about you, but as a transit rider I'd rather have a bus wrapped in ads than no bus at all.