Glass-smashing vandals are scaring off the contractors that clean and maintain Hamilton's bus shelters.
The city has contracted with a private firm since 2002 to clean, maintain and handle advertising at HSR bus shelters. The city takes a cut of the ad revenue, typically $160,000 to $180,000 a year.
Last fall, the city issued a request for proposals for a new six-year advertising and maintenance contract, but no company bothered bidding — including the city's current contractor, Outfront Media.
Prospective vendors told the city a six-year contract is too short to be worthwhile. But they also "want to get out of the business" of shelter maintenance — in part because of the rising cost of vandalism, said Tanya Detmar, a transit planning and infrastructure manager for HSR.
Read the complete article at https://www.thespec.com/news-story/8121478-bus-shelter-vandals-smash-city-of-hamilton-ad-revenue/
