Wednesday Pedal Press #1
Weekly insights, updates, and musings on cycling, infrastructure projects, Vision Zero, and more in Nashville and Middle Tennessee.
Hey hey, MiddleTNCyclists –
My goal is to start a weekly blog post here to update you on all of the latest information, news, and events. Depending upon what’s going on, these may be long, or they may be short, but I will try to provide a synopsis of all the goodness I’ve been involved in, and talk about any changes going on with the website as well.
Gallatin Pike/Main Street Updates
I jumped on the Gallatin Pike/Main Street webinar on Monday to learn as much as I could about the latest updates before attending the meeting during the lunch hour on Tuesday at the Inglewood Library. In the webinar, I learned that Fairpointe was still suggesting the same proposals as the last round of meetings. I had been under the assumption that in these current meetings, we would be receiving Fairpointe Planning’s final recommendations.
This made me a bit disappointed because I had anticipated more progress. Nonetheless, I was pleased that the key takeaway from the last round was that landscaping and bicycle facilities were identified as “must haves.” Keep attending these meetings and vocalizing the need for complete bicycle infrastructure along this corridor! I did later learn that NDOT was prompted by Council to hold another round of feedback between the two designs.
The largest difference between the two options still proposed is either center-running bus rapid transit or curb-running Bus Rapid Transit (BRT). This distinction is incredibly important, and I want to briefly discuss why everyone should be shouting for the center-running bus lanes from the rooftop (Concept B).
It goes without saying that Nashville has missed the boat on light rail. We simply have grown too much for citizens and council to stomach the costs and drastic changes to infrastructure that would be necessary for light rail. However, BRT can still be incredibly effective and transformative for moving people efficiently throughout Nashville.
So, which one (center-running, curb-running), and why is it so important? The Institute for Transportation & Development Policy and many independent bodies have found that center-running bus lanes are far and away superior. From the ITDP, “Center of roadway or bus-only corridor keeps buses away from the busy curbside where cars are parking, standing, and turning.” Considering this appears to be NDOTs first implementation of BRT, it is paramount to set the proper precedent for future projects. Once again, we cannot miss the boat on doing the right thing. If you haven’t been able to attend a meeting please reach out via SurveyMonkey and vocalize your support for center-running BRT to get us in the right lane!
Presentation resources can be found here.
Notes from the Vision Zero Advisory Committee Meeting (6/11)
Year to Date, traffic fatalities on State routes are down 42%, and down 20% on local roads. This is awesome news. While we cannot pinpoint the precise cause for the decrease in traffic fatalities, all efforts to reduce them are worthy, and necessary investments.
Nashville Streetlight Updates on the High-Injury Network
In last month’s meeting, we began a conversation with NDOT about the ongoing project to convert all of Nashville’s streetlights to new LED lighting. With this project, NDOT will also be able to immediately tell when a light is out, rather than waiting for a report to come in through HUB. Last summer, the Vision Zero Advisory Committee was given a presentation from NDOT regarding the conversion and told that the High-Injury Network would be prioritized in the project.
It was the committee’s belief that this meant the HIN would be replaced first, but rather NES is replacing the streetlights in geographic “blocks” and within each block, prioritizing the HIN. This means that parts of the HIN won’t be attended to until the very end of the project, potentially in 4 years. The ongoing work to replace the streetlights can be followed at NashvilleStreetlights.com.
Since the VZAC has learned the methodology that NES is following to replace the streetlights, the committee is working with NDOT to find ways that the HIN can be prioritized immediately. These are truly lifesaving measures, and if there is the capability to make these changes promptly, that is a worthwhile expenditure.
Speed Limit Reductions
Ben Hubert, a Committee Member, recently noticed that there were local streets that should have had their speed limit reduced to 25 mph as a part of NDOT’s Neighborhood Speed Limit Reduction efforts, but they had not. This was an early Vision Zero initiative by NDOT. From Metro’s website, “Metro streets are classified as arterials, collectors, and locals. This change applies to local streets in the Urban Services District. A few local streets that already have speed limits less than 25 mph or that serve select non-residential areas will be exempt.”
Ben’s attentiveness to this issue sparked an NDOT investigation. Nashville’s Major and Collector Street Plan (MCSP) generally does not include local streets, and NDOT’s Street Centerline files do not include MCSP classifications. Their investigation found that, “In the process of removing arterials and collectors from the street centerline files, some segments of local street were inadvertently removed.”
However, a preliminary eyes-on examination of some of these streets has found that some of these areas do have 25mph speed limits. That may be from previous speed reduction efforts, being near a school, or a myriad of possibilities. Nonetheless, NDOT plans to visually assess all remaining local streets and are estimating it will take 2-3 months to complete the sign changes. A major thankyou to Ben and NDOT for their work on identifying and fixing these omissions.
Safe Routes to School Pilots
The VZAC was also given a presentation by Fairpointe Planning on the Safe Routes to School Program Toolkit that they’ve created. The toolkit largely follows Vision Zero’s methodology for creating safe pathways and routes by following the Five E’s: Engineering, Education, Encouragement, Enforcement & Evaluation. Currently, fifteen schools have been identified to receive updates as a part of a pilot program in the 2024-25 school year. The committee has requested to have further information about the qualitative changes and progress of the pilot program at the July meeting.
Vision Zero Outreach
The VZAC also voted to create an Outreach subcommittee to further the scope and knowledge of Vision Zero throughout the community. The precise role and function of that subcommittee will be defined over the course of time. Amongst my other involvement, I plan on being an active member of this subcommittee.
Upcoming Events and Other Info
This past weekend was The Milligan in Watertown, TN. Unfortunately, I could not attend the event this year, but it looks like it was a beautiful event, with many excellent tributes to Alyssa throughout the weekend. The event benefited Families for Safe Streets. Thank you to everyone who helped plan and participate.
Amongst the great number of group rides this week, the annual Juneteenth Freedom Day Ride is this Saturday, June 15th. There will be a 10-mile group/family ride led by Music City Dope Pedalers, as well as a 25-mile self-guided route. I am looking forward to this! Register on Eventbrite.
Be visible. Be predictable. Do good. Cheers!