Inside Nashville's Oddly Ugly Bus-Rapid Transit Debate

[thelakelander]

Not all is peaches and cream with the implementation of Nashville's proposed BRT system:

City planners have been plotting the project since 2008, embarking on fact-finding missions to places that have had transit success stories, such as Portland and Cleveland. Now, the Amp is in its final stages. In late September, Nashville sent federal officials its application for $75 million in funding for the project, and they're expecting a final answer on Tuesday.

Detractors include residents from North Nashville, a mostly lower-income African-American neighborhood, who feel like they're being left out and would prefer to see increased regular bus service in their community. (One state representative even threatened to sue city officials if North Nashville is not more integral to the project.) Fiscal conservatives, of which Nashville has plenty, say the project is an example of government largess. And then there are the residents in and around the mayor's neighborhood, whose traffic and parking concerns have been rolled into an increasingly fraught class war. 

Back when public debate over the BRT first started heating up in fall of 2012, a West End resident actually told a transit planner at a public hearing that "we don't want the riffraff from East Nashville in our neighborhood." Another homeowner said an influx of "burger-flippers" into the western precincts was a worry, prompting one East Nashville merchant to propose a T-shirt idea: "Burger flippers for the Amp."

full article: http://www.theatlanticcities.com/commute/2014/03/inside-nashvilles-oddly-ugly-bus-rapid-transit-debate/8540/

[icarus]

Wow, I'd say it was a cautionary tale for Jax's implementation of BRT but we've never been a City to learn from our own mistakes let alone anyone else's.

[IrvAdams]

To be honest, it would be good just to see us get to the open debate stage, as they have. I'm not really worried how contentious the talk is, at least they're at the stage where they're discussing it seriously.

[thelakelander]

Here are a few images of Nashville's proposed BRT line. It looks pretty nice:


http://nashvillepublicradio.org/blog/2013/03/04/bus-rapid-transit-prospect-prompts-calls-from-new-york/


http://nashvillepublicradio.org/blog/2013/07/01/brt-dummy-post/

The Nashville BRT line is similar to the design of Cleveland's Health Line. It will travel in its own dedicated lanes.  Instead of expanding roads, it appears they will be converting two existing lanes into bus only lanes. With that said, I do understand the concerns raised by East Nashville residents. Transit should be designed for residents just as much as it is for tourist.

[thelakelander]

From the outside looking in, on the other hand, the route seems fine. It ties downtown with several major destinations in a pretty straight line.  It would be interesting to see what Nashville's long range mass transit plans are and how this corridor fits into them.

[icarus]

Wow, I'd say it was a cautionary tale for Jax's implementation of BRT but we've never been a City to learn from our own mistakes let alone anyone else's.

Let me clarify my comment, Jacksonville has begun rollout of BRT in non-dedicated lanes resulting in a less than rapid system on a corridor that does not really represent some of the areas with the highest need.  The only proposals for street car routes and/or expansion of the people mover doesn't really serve the working poor or the people most in need of efficient public transportation.

I would hope that we wouldn't continue down the path we are on or that we would consider the feedback in Nashville in determining which corridors to try and develop. Based on experience and what the JTA is executing on ... my original comment stands.

[tufsu1]

Let me clarify my comment, Jacksonville has begun rollout of BRT in non-dedicated lanes resulting in a less than rapid system on a corridor that does not really represent some of the areas with the highest need. 

depends on your definition of need....providing better access for residents on the northwest side of town to jobs on the southside is a pretty big need

[I-10east]

^^^Exactly.

[I-10east]

The whole argument with the Nashville article is that they are cutting out a low income area. Jax is like the anti-Nashville, going to the Northwest area; That's not exactly an upper income area. By all means, I'm not saying that anything is perfect here (with no dedicated lanes etc). 

[thelakelander]

I don't see a real problem with the NW BRT line's selected route. Route selection aside, the larger issue is a lack of education of what's being called BRT here and it's implementation.  I'd argue that what we're calling BRT is simply reliable bus service, something one would expect in any decent sized city. We'll have a bus line with frequencies of 10-15 minute headways that will make a limited amount of stops between I-295/Lem Turner and DT Jax. Plus, each of those stops will have what people typically expect for a city our size.......bus shelters with amenities like benches, trash cans, real-time information, system maps, etc.

Wow, I'd say it was a cautionary tale for Jax's implementation of BRT but we've never been a City to learn from our own mistakes let alone anyone else's.

Let me clarify my comment, Jacksonville has begun rollout of BRT in non-dedicated lanes resulting in a less than rapid system on a corridor that does not really represent some of the areas with the highest need.  The only proposals for street car routes and/or expansion of the people mover doesn't really serve the working poor or the people most in need of efficient public transportation.

I would hope that we wouldn't continue down the path we are on or that we would consider the feedback in Nashville in determining which corridors to try and develop. Based on experience and what the JTA is executing on ... my original comment stands.

The proposed streetcar route actually travels through Brooklyn, which one could argue is an area of need. The issue Brooklyn faces is one revolving around land use and policies that will either allow the existing population to benefit from new development in the area or force them out. The same goes for the streetcar connection to Springfield, that would penetrate the Cathedral District.

Not mentioned is the proposed commuter rail north corridor, which would utilize the S-Line Corridor.  To get from DT to the airport area, it travels through New Town, Durkeeville, Sugar Hill, Springfield, New Springfield, Brentwood, etc. Stops along the way could include Mrytle Avenue, Kings Road (within walking distance of EWC), 8th Street, UF Health Jacksonville, Springfield Warehouse District/Swisher, etc. In this case, you're connecting residents that rely heavily on public transportation with major destinations throughout the city.  At the same time, you're adding something that's attractive to choice riders. It doesn't get any better than that, IMO.



With that said, I don't know how Nashville is promoting their future transit plans but for all we know at this point, they could be looking at additional corridors for various premium transit services and this one just happens to be a starter corridor.

[tufsu1]

what does that have to do with implementing a cross town brt that is as slow as the bus system?

do you even remotely understand the purpose of BRT is to speed up the trip and frequency....in our case, there will be far fewer stops than local routes and the buses will run every 10-15 minutes....that should speed up the average northside-to-southside transit trip significantly.

[tufsu1]

Well then feel free to get involved in JTAs Blueprint for Transportation Excellence

[thelakelander]

have you ever relied on the bus here locally and do you understand the criticism from icarus of the route?

I understand that many of us prefer LRT or some other mode over BRT but how does the selected route not serve the working poor in our city (this is a question for anyone)? I'd argue that JTA has spent more time figuring out how to shuttle the most transit dependent across town over finding ways/routes that appeal to choice riders. The problem is in the misleading promotion of what we're getting, the cost and the negative impact it may have on securing federal dollars for true premium transit services.

Looking at Nashville's BRT line, it appears they've taken an opposite approach. Their first BRT route is one that ignores the most transit dependent areas but serves choice riders and tourist pretty well. By the same token, this route comes after the implementation of their first commuter rail line. For commuter rail, they selected the cheapest option available but going that route has resulted in a 32-mile rail line that averages less riders a day than our struggling 2.5 mile Skyway.

Btw, I'm surprised this proposed BRT system will not directly connect with their existing commuter rail line.