City of Boston Releases RFP For New Street Furniture Program

The City of Boston announced a Request for Proposals (RFP) procurement process to identify a business partner to upgrade and expand its network of bus shelters, wayfinding kiosks, and other street furniture elements in the City’s rights-of-way. These amenities serve transit riders, active transportation users and pedestrians. The City’s vision for its new Street Furniture Program is to influence how people travel and improve public spaces through functional, well-designed amenities that also attract advertisers interest. The program will be self-sustaining through advertising revenue.

Street furniture has seen a resurgence in popularity since the pandemic, with programs worldwide increasing transit accessibility; offering relief from climate impacts, including reduce exposure to extreme heat; and fostering neighborhood identity while encouraging economic activity through advertising on program elements.

“Every street block in our City has the potential to be more accessible and welcoming for everyone. With input from urban design partners, we developed an RFP that connects essential street amenities with public art to make street infrastructure more comfortable, inviting and accessible,” said Mayor Michelle Wu. “We look forward to selecting a partner who can help bring this vision to life, creating streets that are safer, easier to navigate and more inviting for residents and visitors alike.”

Boston’s original Street Furniture Program, launched in 2001, was one of the first of its kind in North America. A pioneer in both design and delivery, the City entered into a public-private partnership that deployed hundreds of amenities throughout Boston. The program resulted in more than 360 bus shelters, six self-cleaning public toilets, and dozens of City information panels, all maintained through revenue generated by advertising sales.

Over the 25 years since the original program began, street furniture has evolved significantly, incorporating digital and other technologies that deliver real-time information to transit riders and the public. Cities around the world use digital displays to provide emergency messaging and public information to residents and visitors.

Advertising space on street furniture has also risen significantly in value, according to the Outdoor Advertising Association of America (OAAA), the trade organization for the out-of-home (OOH) advertising industry. OAAA recently reported that OOH advertising generated $2.12 billion in the first quarter of 2026, with street furniture advertising revenues increasing by 11.5% year over year—the second-highest revenue growth among major OOH formats. According to OAAA, more than $137 million was spent on OOH advertising in the Boston market in 2025.

The City released the new RFP on September 7, 2026, through the City’s Procurement Department webpage.

Interested and qualified parties must register through the Supplier Portal to access the RFP. The City will hold a virtual question-and-answer session regarding the RFP on September 16, 2026, from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Meeting information will be posted on the City’s Procurement Department webpage.

Responses to the RFP are due on November 4, 2026.

Further information about the Street Furniture Program is available at https://www.boston.gov/departments/property-management/coordinated-street-furniture

For information about this RFP, please contact pmdbidinfo@boston.gov.