“I want to hear from you, Nashville, on how we can improve our transit and transportation infrastructure,” Mayor Megan Barry said in her inaugural address. But how? Here are five facts about the state of transit in Nashville to consider when pondering that question, which is critical to future real estate growth.
Nashville's No. 19 When It Comes To Traffic Jams
Navigational device company TomTom says West Coast cities have the country’s worst traffic-clogged commutes, which is no surprise. LA's the worst in the country for traffic. But Nashville's no slouch in that regard, coming in at No. 19.
It's Going To Get Worse
More people = more cars. More cars = more jams. Nashville's population growth's no secret. By 2035, the 10-county region around Nashville will be larger than metro Denver is now (2.6M people).
Nashvillians Aren't Interested In Riding To Work
Fewer than 3% of Nashvillians ride any kind of public transit to work, according to the Census Bureau. That's less than a number of other comparable places, such as Richmond, Tampa, Kansas City and especially Portland, OR, which has about 12% ridership.
Officially, There's Desire For More Transit
Earlier this year, Middle Tennessee mayors and county executives approved a multibillion-dollar transportation plan outlined by the Nashville Area Metropolitan Planning Organization. It includes an unprecedented $1.2B for mass transit projects over the next 25 years.
But Better Public Transit Doesn't Always Encourage Ridership
Should Nashville spend big bucks on transit? Maybe, but cities that have done so haven't always seen higher ridership. "Charlotte, for example, invested heavily in transit over the last two decades, but has not seen a significant increase in ridership when compared to the region’s astronomical growth," notes the Atlantic.
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