Don't shed a tear for the billboards of Times Square

Outlook We Brits often seem to think the US is the land of the free-wheeling entrepreneur. That it lacks the sort of stifling bureaucracy that this country specialises in.

Well, think again. It seems New York’s famous Times Square could lose its supposedly iconic billboards. Apparently their size infringes a 2012 federal ruling. Times Square isn’t really a square. It’s a crossroads, one that was added to the National Highway System three years ago. With $90m of funding at stake, various bits of government are spitting at each other.

New York is understandably worried about ad revenues, but the supposed impact on tourism? Visitors with any sense can find a multitude of more rewarding attractions in the city that never sleeps. Times Square, even with its billboards, is rather like Piccadilly Circus: over-rated.