Union Station Brings Advertisers Aboard

Commuters pouring through Los Angeles’ Union Station will soon be greeted by advertisements for movie studios, apparel companies, telecom giants and other companies. The ads will be posted on lampposts in parking lots, along tunnels leading to trains and on station platforms. “There’s a tremendous audience now with all the train lines leading into Union Station,” said Chris Culver, president of Culver Amherst, the New York-based advertising company that won the rights to erect signage from Union Station owner Catellus Development Corp. Commuters could see the first signs going up as early as Friday. Culver said the signs will be more attractive than billboards and contain advertising designed to catch the eye of consumers who have time on their hands. “With a typical [outdoor] billboard, you have a seven-second read,” Culver said. “But with a place like Union Station, you have a seven-minute read. That allows marketers to tell a story rather than simply using an advertisement for branding purposes.”