The Future Is Nigh: Poster Classification In The 21st Century

The consultant Neil Shepherd-Smith was the next to take the stand at this Week’s MRG conference to talk us through the methodology used to create the POSTAR data (see Newsline).

Neil first covered the subject of poster panel classification and why it is so necessary to do this. Outdoor is the most difficult medium to research due to several factors:

• Outdoor is a passive medium;
• Direct measurement is impractical;
• There are a massive 80,000 poster panels to measure and visibility, angle of view, size and location all need to be taken into account;
• Coverage and frequency estimation is complex;
• The time factor is vital.

In the first instance there were counts made on both vehicular and pedestrian traffic in order to create passages. The passages were then modified to OTS as visibility often differs, depending on the position of the panel.

A visibility study was then undertaken and visibility factors are now available for every panel. Londin & Browning were appointed to classify the 80,000 panels using the latest technology to give pinpoint accuracy. Accurate grid reference locations also provide an important link to environmental data. Shepherd Smith believes that the methodology and technology used for POSTAR will actually make this “future proof”.

Current POSTAR projects include complete panel reclassification, a pedestrian visibility experiment and a new travel survey.