Maybe you’ve noticed company logos on some 5-1-1 road signs in the state. The cash strapped Georgia Department of Transportation is letting companies advertise on their property in order to raise money.

GDOT calls it a sponsorship program. The money will go to maintain the 5-1-1 real travel time information service which costs the state about 45 to 50 thousand dollars a month.

Monica Luck with GDOT says there’s currently a couple hundred signs, and expect to see more.

"Right now most of the signs are in the Metro Atlanta area and there are some in north Georgia and we’re starting to expand," Luck says. "When it’s all said and done we anticipate having about a 1,000 signs statewide."

Corporate sponsorship is not a new idea to GDOT… it’s been raising money for advertising on its exit signs for quite some time now.

And two years ago it let a car insurance company put its logo on its highway emergency response trucks.

It’s a growing trend. GDOT also wants advertising space at rest areas and welcome centers in order to help pay for their maintenance.

Tags: Georgia, travel, transportation, Georgia Department of Transportation, advertising, 5-1-1 road signs, corporate sponsorship