Roads in ads

[Pete from Boston]

On one of the old-folks channels I watch there's an ad playing for HDVision sunglasses that has several road shots -- a wide BGS, and a toll plaza with many EZ-Pass signs over lanes.  I only got a quick, distant look, and don't have a DVR.  Anyone seen this and recognize the roads?

[SteveG1988]

Here are a few roads for ya, in an advert campaign from 1993/1994, it is interesting what has and hasn't really happened, or it has happened in a different way

[hotdogPi]

I saw a car commercial with a sign saying "Mass Ave" with a 2A sign and an arrow. The 2A shield was smaller than normal (although a few of those do exist in real life).

[golden eagle]

There was a car ad Peyton Manning did a while back, and the ad showed a BGS with a US 2 shield pointing to Greenwood. While there is a Greenwood south of Indianapolis, there's no US 2 there.

[Henry]

Speaking of car commercials, I remember one from the mid-90s that had two men traveling on H3, and the question of why there are Interstates in HI.

[formulanone]

Here are a few roads for ya, in an advert campaign from 1993/1994, it is interesting what has and hasn't really happened, or it has happened in a different way

It looks like he's driving a W124 E-Class Mercedes in that ad. Mercedes-Benz was one of the first automakers with in-dash navigation units available, but not commercially available for a few years. Amazing that nearly everything (save the phone booths and that nearly everything looked like it was an out-take from Blade Runner) came true in some way, although the videophone premise exists. Looking back, the link between booths and the phone card - both a common sight in 1993/94 - had to be preserved because it was their current business model, and people could relate to it tangibly in some way.

Somewhere, TV road/car ads which gloss over every realistic scenario:

- The rain-slicked road on a sunny day
- The large city which has no traffic during daytime
- The parking spot right in front of the building in downtown
- Construction zones performing the most hazardous types of jobs just inches away from your windshield
- Windshields without glare
- People who can carry on a conversation in a moving convertible
- Curvy rural roads with no large vehicle traffic upon them
- Garages that are entirely white or black and have just the right lighting

[Laura]

I feel like the majority of roads in ads are non-descript so that the ad can be played nationwide and not be tied to any region. It honestly makes the commercials kind of blah and flavorless.