• ABC News, Friday, September 26, 2008 10:30 AM

Clear Channel Outdoor has proposed selling advertising space on California's nearly 700 emergency roadside message boards in a plan backed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. The boards are used for "Amber Alerts," which give information on missing children, as well as for traffic delay messages.

The state estimates that ad space could bring in tens of millions a year. Some of the new income would be used to upgrade the emergency messages, including pictures and color-coding. But opponents say California doesn't need more roadside visual pollution and question how effective the message boards will be if they're used for something other than emergencies.

Ironically, the impetus for the ad plan is a decline in state gas taxes because high fuel prices are forcing Californians to drive less -- meaning fewer eyeballs for all billboards.

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