Results
What immediate mobility challenges are you facing right now?
- Limited sidewalk access.
- Traffic, major crashes, headaches, the stress of driving
- Pedestrian safety, biker safety. Even just right around our campus, we need to get people to slow down
- Parking is also an equity issue, a lot of staff work outside of what is a transit route; keep in mind not everyone can take the transit system
- I would love for it be more multimodal
- Making all of the things connected,
- After COVID, supervisors were more open to working from home 2 days a week, more productive, and less stressed to not have to drive with traffic and deal with parking
- But it seems now people have to be in more often, it feels like people are trying to get rid of working from home
- Are our parking policies discouraging people from coming in? How do we incentivize people to come in?
- The number of faculty in every day is small
- Would hope that transit options don’t
- People with student-facing and faculty-facing jobs are here
- Odd and even days off and days on models international for how to make
- Public transit is much better in other major cities, and I’d like to use transit here, but it’s not a viable option for me here, especially with time.
- I have taken the bus in Nashville since the 80s; because of traffic, it causes bus timing to be off; usually fine taking the bus in the morning, but the afternoon is more difficult–I can walk home faster some days; traffic & consistency are both challenges; would like to see bus lane during rush hours.
- Need reliable bus timing and accessible stops, dedicated bus lanes
- Not enough pedestrian infrastructure
- Cheap plastic dividers for the bike lanes would make everyone so much safer and not be too expensive to implement!
- Also people parking in bike lanes and or roads that are “mixed-use” for cars and bikes being totally not safe for bikes
- Odd and even days off and days on, models international for how to make
- Going to the symphony would take about 1.5 hours by bus, even though that would be our preferred mode. Difficult to walk up the hill to WeGo Central afterward. The Downtown Loop service coming back would be helpful. +1
- Express bus to the airport took 1.25 hours and would love to have a more express option
- Route 7–missed stop and got off at a place with no sidewalk along Hillsboro Rd/21st and had to cross 3 highway ramps/not enough pedestrian infrastructure
- With bikes too, I live on campus, on 21st avenue, people are bikes are on the sidewalk, and that is dangerous too, dedicate
- My department honors employees leaving early if they take public transpo, but I wish the bus and train had a few other late options. If I know I can’t make the bus at 4:30, because i have to stay later for work, I’ll drive. Availability is a challenge sometimes.
- Really super mass light rail from Baltimore and being able to park and hop on it and get downtown
- Would love to see more options for biking, especially right around vanderbilt, there are a lot of points that are hard for bicyclist, would be better if city understood protected lanes, especially with ebikes, would get better used
- Would have to walk 3 miles just to get the transit
- I am currently living close to campus so I can walk to work, but some safety precautions of being a female walking alone at night
- 6 months ago was living in nations, taking bus, trying not to pay for parking, took 2 buses and took 1 hour, which felt like should be a 20 minute drive
- Staff parking fee
- Matthew is lucky enough to live by major
- I live in Lebanon and prefer to take the train and then bus in to work. I think it’s only about an extra 15 minutes commute in the morning and might be about 30 in the evening, I wish the evening wasn’t that much longer. But it’s worth not driving in traffic and dealing with the negative feelings that come from that.
- For most part enjoy taking the bus, even though it took an hour, and 20 minute wait standing in front of someone’s house waiting, could be waiting up to an hour,
- It is definitely a time thing
- Assumption that people live near the bus
- Thinking about regional transit and when I am going to get priced out of neighborhood
- Live in Lebanon take the train. Only two options/departures are available to Lebanon. More options
- could benefit more riders. The first option only goes to Mt. Juliet. Taking it all the way to Lebanon may work.
- Live near Donelson take the train. – The Uber pick up can be a challenge when I need to leave campus
- for another appointment—the restricted pickup zones.
- Any other movement around the city seems restricted. New to area. Campus is focused on transit
- (unsuccessful). Getting people on and off campus but not around the area or to and from resources that
- make this a great place to live.
- Ride new 12 th S bike lanes everyday. Kids at school next to house. Getting from 12 th to campus is a
- challenge. Particularly at Edgehill. Don’t let kids out to play or walk to friends house because the chance
- of them being struck by vehicles is significant. Police response not conducive to proper enforcement.
- Streets safer for all users.
- Bike to work w electric bike. Buying the bike was cheaper than paying to park on campus. Usually drive
- only when I have to go to off-campus appointments.
- Cost to drive is extraordinary. Other options to get to work are necessary. Higher parking costs to
- dissuade people from driving may need to try other incentives like discounted electric bike purchase to
- VU employees.
- Live near a dog park near Centennial Park. Crossing the west end (28 th /31 st ) feels like I take my life in my own hands.
- Aggressive, negligent, fast driving vehicles. The city is made for cars with every other mode being
- secondary. Exorbitant rents nearer to campus but evens out once factoring in car, gas, driving, parking,
- etc. No pedestrian connection between Centennial park dog park—Park Plaza—even though they’ve
- redone and updated it there’s no connection.
- Sunday at Centennial park has cars parked on the grass because they can’t access the park any other way
What are the top 3 mobility infrastructure projects that you think are critical to the structure/quality of life in Nashville and that you would support?
- More park and rides, safer/better, outside the core.
- Dedicated bus lanes
- More Park and rides
- Expanded Greenaways
- More dedicated + protected bike lanes
- More sidewalks 80% coverage + connected sidewalk
- Usable LRT that serves most of the area.
- Useable light rail that goes all over the metro area
- Street lighting
- Respect for sidewalks. (construction taking over sidewalks; deliveries park on sidewalks; etc.)
- Not project, but approach: sustainable projects taking into account that development changes our ability to protect ourselves from natural disasters.
- Hard to have a conversation about transportation and not talk about housing. Hope the solutions being considered are holistic and regional.
- Integrated regional transit system so folks don’t feel like they don’t have to live in the city center to make transit work
- Basic enforcement on major arteries for aggressive drivers and people running red lights
- Whatever is implemented, make it sustainable–take into account (over)development & natural disasters
- Hard to have a discussion about transportation without also talking about housing; need to take a holistic approach
- Integrated regional transit system. So people don’t feel like they have to live in the city center.
- Basic enforcement on major arteries for aggressive drivers. Something that can tame aggression/recklessness in drivers.
- Integrated regional transit system
- Enforcements for aggressive drivers (red lights aren’t followed on major streets)
- Construction sites take over sidewalks/ no respect for sidewalks
- Whatever solutions are put in place, would like them to be sustainable + mindful of wildlife, development
- Sidewalks in places that need them but don’t have them—corridor on 31 st Ave at Park Place.
Are you interested in active modes of transportation/ what are your barriers to using them?
- Trouble navigating traffic while on bike or walking–have to squeeze between cars sometimes
- Live too far out/ Need to serve the needs of people who live close and people who live far away
- Parts of my bike commute can feel too tight—nowhere for cars to get around me.
- Crossing Blakemore Ave needs a longer walk signal. It feels rushed. For those that are not able bodied, it could feel extra unsafe.
- Stoplight on 21 st by CVS takes too long to change and is confusing as a driver, too, when it seems like most people, walkers or drivers aren’t paying attention.
- Parking on 21st is interesting sometimes, near Starbucks, Panera, CVS, etc. With street parking, cars leaving parking lots have to pull out onto the sidewalk to see where to go and it doesn’t seem like the safest situation for pedestrians using those sidewalks.
- Same on Garland / 24, since they closed the access through the VA!
- Would love to see parts of Broadway closed to cars.
- Vanderbilt pedestrian/traffic wise: 25 th Ave near ESB parking garage/ medical area. Walking along Blakemore is obviously a car-centric area. Campus is pedestrian. But there are transitional/ in-between areas that are of concern. See lots of near misses at Memorial Gym and Greens/Greek Row. People drive down 25 th Ave like it’s West End but there are many more pedestrians.
- Agreed, also near 25th staff garage where its heavy pedestrian traffic but cars coming out of the garage.
- Seen some near misses and know folks who have been hit.
- Medical center vans circulating, one of them goes on Fairfax, VUMC shuttle, people live within 5 miles
- Don’t feel safe biking around campus, because brick work is not steady, bike lanes
- Sidewalks can be a hazard, plus leaves, and brick are slip and fall waiting to happen
- Darkness starting at 4pm, don’t want to walk in the dark, get VU alerts, it is pedestrian safety and also personal safety, especially as a woman. More lighting would be helpful
- Increased visibility of patrols would also be a help
- Crossing Blakemore–feel rushed with longer walking times/distances and traffic
- Long waits at certain intersections at pedestrian lights
- The amount of time to cross the street at pedestrian lights is often not enough time to cross safely
- 21st & Grand is a dangerous intersection
- Would love to see parts of Broadway pedestrian-only (like Beale St in Memphis)
- Concerned about transition areas–25th Ave near the parking garage & Grin’s–heavy traffic to pedestrian traffic areas
What questions should we be asking?
- What would it take for people to leave their car at home?
- Who will these changes attract to Nashville in the future?
- What kind of incentive programs could we have to encourage people to take public transit that they’re not currently taking in their neighborhood, for whatever reason?
- How do we get kids excited to bike/walk/scoot to school + have parents feel confident for kids safety?
- What other ways do we utilize transportation outside of work and back?
- How do you get started? How do you pay for a fare?
- Child will have to ride the bus to school. How can we simplify the process of riding public transit?
- What can Vanderbilt do as both an institution and employer to support Nashville’s efforts?
- Who’s not here?
- Who will these changes attract to Nashville in the future?
- What kind of incentive programs could we have that could encourage people to take public transportation?
- How has disability affected your transit access?
- Given there is a citizen component to this (advocacy, education, voting, etc) how can we continue to support your work?
- Language barriers and international students–post-docs don’t know buses are free and so stay in Hillsboro Village area because they’re not familiar with the service
- How can we do something to address the stigma of taking public transit
- Can you offer anonymous question responses?