City of Vancouver eyeing nine potential locations next to major roads for new advertising screens
As part of efforts to generate more revenue without increasing property taxes or other user fees, the City of Vancouver is considering installing giant advertising billboards and digital screens along some major roadways.
The City has launched a bidding process seeking an advertising services company to conduct market demand research, evaluate what types and sizes of signs would offer the greatest value, and estimate potential annual revenue from placing billboards on City-owned street rights-of-way.
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Four industry-standard billboard sizes are being contemplated by the City — 10 ft. by 20 ft. or 10 ft. by 30 ft. as “small format” (suitable for urban arterial roads), 12 ft. by 24 ft. as “medium format” (typical for city streets), 14 ft. by 48 ft. as “large format” (typical for highways and major road corridors), and 16 ft. by 60 ft. or 20 ft. by 60 ft. or larger as “spectacular format” (reserved for premium, high-impact locations).
As well, the municipal government has compiled a highly preliminary list of at least nine potential locations where such signs could be considered and further evaluated by the selected consultant. These locations are:
- Potential “large format” signs:
- North end of the Oak Street Bridge
- North end of the Knight Street Bridge (at Southeast Marine Drive)
- South end of the Ironworkers Memorial Bridge
- McGill Avenue directly north of Hastings Racecourse’s horse barns
- Median at the intersection of Quebec Street and Milross Avenue in Northeast False Creek (previous location of the Trans Am Rapture stacked car sculpture)
- Potential “medium format” signs:
- Southwest corner of the intersection of Southwest Marine Drive and Manitoba Street
- Potential “small format” signs:
- South end of the Granville Street Bridge (at West 4th Avenue)
- Boundary Road between Marine Way and East 4th Avenue
- South end of the Cambie Street Bridge
Optimally for revenue potential purposes, City staff state the sign locations are ideally at corridors with significant visibility and vehicle traffic, with a noted specific preference for locations with over 40,000 vehicles per day.
Digital advertising screen on the Squamish Nation reserve next to Marine Drive near Capilano Road and the Lions Gate Bridge. (Google Maps)
But City staff have also outlined several safety and light-pollution requirements for any sign placements.
These include keeping signs at least 15 metres away from intersections and traffic signals, providing a minimum vertical clearance of 4.5 metres above the roadway, maintaining clear sightlines of at least 200 metres in both directions of vehicle travel, and enabling automatic brightness controls that adjust to ambient light. Rooftop installations under this initiative are not permitted, and the digital displays — intended for static images only — cannot include video, animation, or sound.
Other considerations include minimizing impacts on neighbourhood character and nearby homes, as well as avoiding visual clutter or advertising saturation — for example, by ensuring adequate distance from other third-party billboards and bus shelters with ads.
New 35×10 outdoor advertising video board at BC Place Stadium, fronting Pacific Boulevard. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
New 85×25 outdoor advertising video board at BC Place Stadium, fronting the Georgia Viaduct. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
This procurement process marks the first step toward the City potentially installing billboards on public street rights-of-way, following Vancouver City Council’s September 2025 approval of new policies to regulate and expand digital advertising billboards and screens.
On City-owned lands, there are currently 36 billboard faces, generating only about $261,000 annually or an average of just $7,250 per billboard.
As for private lands, there are more than 700 static billboards — many grandfathered in before 2017 regulations. These contribute little financial value to the City, though some offer community programming space. Only a handful of digital billboards are currently permitted.
City staff note that digital advertising screens can generate up to eight times more revenue than static billboards — which are traditionally print poster-based — and advertisers are pushing to expand their use.
New replacement outdoor advertising video board at BC Place Stadium, fronting the Georgia Viaduct. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
In September 2025, City Council also approved an application by a property owner and advertising services provider to install a giant advertising screen within the Granville Entertainment District — on the rooftop of the Popeyes’ fried chicken restaurant building at the northwest corner of the intersection of Seymour Street and Granville Street, which is a location with very high vehicle and pedestrian traffic volumes.
As well, in 2024, provincial Crown corporation Pavco installed four new giant advertising screens outside BC Place Stadium to generate new revenue, with all signs located at high vehicle traffic areas. It did not need to receive the municipal government’s permission, as the stadium is on provincially-owned land.
Roughly 15 years ago, Squamish Nation installed giant digital advertising screens at four locations on its reserves in Metro Vancouver and Squamish, strategically next to busy roads. This includes screens on Marine Drive between Capilano Road and the Lions Gate Bridge, the north end of the the Ironworkers Memorial Bridge, and the south end of the Burrard Street Bridge, which was removed a few years ago for Senakw’s construction.
In 2012, the City of New Westminster installed four digital advertising screens on municipal property next to the approaches of the Queensborough Bridge, Alex Fraser Bridge, and Pattullo Bridge, as well as Brunette Avenue near Highway 1. At the time of installation, it was stated that these four signs would generate about $2 million in revenue for the municipal government.
A 2021 City of Surrey staff report indicates the jurisdiction has eight digital advertising screens on municipal property next to roadways.
Concept of the digital advertising screen on the rooftop of 897 Granville St., Vancouver. (Astral Out-of-Home Bell Media)
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