Nashville Is Ready to Embrace Transit
In a new poll, a supermajority of city residents support a sales tax increment to pay for transit expansion.
Nashville finally seems poised to do something about its car dependence.
Regional planners have put together a $6 billion transit expansion plan that calls for four light rail lines, three bus rapid transit routes, a commuter rail connection, and more. Meanwhile, a bill backed by Governor Bill Haslam has been advancing in the statehouse to allow both a statewide gas tax increase and local transit referendums.
It looks like a referendum in Nashville would fare well. A survey conducted by Vanderbilt University found that by a two-to-one margin, Nashville residents support a small sales tax increase to pay for transit, reports Joey Garrison at the Tennessean:
The poll found that 63 percent of Nashvillians would be willing to pay 25 cents more on sales tax for every $100 if the extra money went toward improving public transportation. Thirty-five percent said they would not be willing, while 3 percent said they either didn’t know or refused to answer.
An even higher percentage of respondents, 68 percent, said they would be willing to pay 50 cents in additional sales tax for every $100 they spent, compared with 30 percent who said they would not be willing.
Eighty-six percent of the poll’s respondents said they would support holding a citywide referendum that allows voters to decide whether Nashville should make more funding available for improving public transportation. Just 11 percent said they oppose a referendum.
John Geer, a political science professor at Vanderbilt who co-directed the poll, said the results indicate that dedicated funding for transit has momentum in Nashville.
More recommended reading today: Following last week’s truck attack in London, the Invisible Visible Man considers the growing frequency of terrorist acts committed with motor vehicles. And Bike PGH explains how Pittsburgh is planning to overhaul a local street by adding bus rapid transit and protected bike lanes.
![The $5.2 billion transit plan unveiled by Nashville Mayor Megan Barry last week includes five light rail lines, four rapid bus routes, and frequent bus service on 10 lines. Map: Let's Move Nashville [PDF]](https://i2.wp.com/usa.streetsblog.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2017/10/nashville-transit.png?resize=800%2C450px&ssl=1)
Great transit could take Nashville into the next level of cities yet the obstacles are enormous. Transit is not that popular statewide in Tennessee, a state with less means to help pay even if it wanted to, and the new Trump led federal government seems unlikely to kick in much dough, if any. It sure looks like Greater Nashville will have to fund its own transit improvements.
Bike lanes won’t work in a city with so many hills. Adding a $871 fine to a dedicated Diamond lane would encourage car pooling. Use the funds to lower the fees of Ride Share and Carrage while we wait for self driving cars that can go into transport mode after delivering the owner. I predict that in 5 years only 1 in 10 people will own cars. I know we need a solution now but in less than a decade this will be a moot point. Save the money.
I think that Nashville should have a form of city transportation, subway or light rail. I think it would benefit the economy and would help global warming in TN.There is only a small unnoticeable difference that citizens have to pay and it is completely worth it. I vote for public transit!!!