12Mouth

Wasn't this supposed to be Roberta's pizza? https://www.robertaspizza.com/12-south

But it is basically a mixed use building (built by a private developer) that just restricts who can rent - turnip truck and 8th and roast will take up most of the ground floor. JJ's was a big loss, but it was a coffee shop and grocery replaced with a larger coffee shop and much bigger grocery. There are a bunch of bars/restaurants on division and all around this development on Broadway (I can think of 10 within a one block radius)...I think coffee/grocery was actually a great way to go. How is that private?

#captheinterstate

So I guess in a weird way this is actually my point. When you build high quality completely separate infrastructure for non-cars, people (even those that are not supposed to be there) show up. I think this is a good thing, ultimately. It is easy to make an argument against an empty bad unprotected bike lane on a 35+ mph street, but far more difficult to criticize a high quality option. Let’s see how these 12th S. lanes end up. I suspect that the unprotected last piece connecting to to gulch will be enough to significantly reduce usage, but we’ll see.

See, I don't think this is true (if I'm reading "bike lanes" to imply all bike infrastructure) . Infrastructure can really do a lot to account for crazy drivers and make most people feel safe. I ride an ebike every day to work in an area with reasonably good (but still problematic infrastructure) and most drivers on most days are pretty good. I completely believe that if we decided to build high quality lanes from beginning to end, people will absolutely ride them in large numbers. Ebikes are really a game changer - they outpaced electric car sales last year. I'm talking about infrastructure built for everyday people - even kids - that is completely connected. Imagine if there was a tree-lined greenway median running down West End to downtown. If they ever build the 440 greenway, that would be another example. Will this stuff every be politically viable? I don't know, but I do think it is a whole lot easier to sell nice urban greenways - even if ambitious and expensive, then it is to sell a bus or a stripe of paint on the ground that nobody likes. We aren't too far away from actually being able to connect some of the limited high quality infrastructure we already have. The problem right now is that lots of people say things like, "I would ride xx route except when I get to xx street" due to a lack of high quality connected infrastructure. So, the vast majority of people who want to ride don't do it because they don't feel safe and specific points in the journey. So, we have lots of empty bike lanes and people complaining that nobody would ever ride a bike. Except, go to a greenway and they are everywhere. Will usage go down in the winter? Totally. Is this an option for everyone? Absolutely not. Is this a substitute for mass transit? No. But building infrastructure that is totally separated from cars has been enormously popular around the world and we are already at a point where I can ebike most places in a 3 mile radius from downtown just about as fast as I could drive when you account for parking. At some point in the next decade, it will be faster (at least during certain times of the day). And the long term costs of high quality bike infrastructure are WAY cheaper than mass transit. The one thing we know for sure is that while small things can be done on the margins, cars are not scalable and traffic is going to get worse.

This project is now called the Broadview at Vanderbilt and local coffee purveyor Eighth and Roast has joined Turnip Truck as a second retailer in the complex according to the new construction fencing (for which I was unable to get a picture). https://thebroadviewatvanderbilt.com/

Yeah, it is completely insane that part of the stadium deal did not include sidewalks on Craighead from Franklin Pike to Nolensville. Partly for actual walkers to games, but also for people who want to walk to cheaper lots - I imagine a bunch of businesses would happily rent out lots on game days. Also for access to bars for pre/after parties. The stadium feels like an island right now with minimal ways in/out. 30,000, I think, but still a good point.

Paris is banning all through traffic, which is another way to do it. Residents/tourists can drive in to get to a destination: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-05-13/new-paris-car-ban-will-target-through-traffic https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-02-18/paris-is-banning-traffic-crossing-the-city-center-from-2024

Here is a map from a long time ago. They built part of this on the west side, but were hoping to get federal funds to build the rest. I don't know where the project stands.

So, if the 440 greenway ever gets fully built (which is a big if), there is a plan to get pedestrians across very close to there and run the greenway straight to the stadium. It would be awesome if they could run a little connector leg down the TDOT ROW next to 65 to Biloxi to get people to the bars on 8th.

Yes, eventually. Most surface parking at Vandy will eventually go away.

I'm not sure if this has already been posted, but saw this (old, but probably mostly still accurate) document today. Obviously a little off on the opening date! https://images1.loopnet.com/d2/xQYIoq793Kqb7OEXg4GytlImtmV37Iwb1NMecjWFJtU/document.pdf

I will also say that even if you get the state to sign off, absent a physical barrier or serious enforcement (which will never happen in this city), you will have cars parked and traveling inside of the "dedicated" bus lane all day long.

I mean, I see people walking a little bit and it stands out because it looks crazy. I'm walking on 8th daily, usually multiple times a day and it is rare that I pass a single other person walking. At night, you see a bachelorette party walking from Sinema or whatnot, but they are isolated and it looks like they got lost and made a mistake. Meanwhile, it I'm on 12th or in the Gulch, it is constantly ped traffic. I'm not staying there are not some people walking, but it is not at all heavy ped traffic and like 95% of people going to businesses on 8th are getting there by car. And regardless of the speed limit, people are absolutely doing 45+ (maybe 50 was a very slight exaggeration! ) down 8th between Publix and Kirkwood all day long except for commute times when there is heavier traffic. When you have a wide street like that with fast cars, it is just not a very pleasant place to walk. The most pedestrian traffic by far is around douglas corner, where the road narrows significantly, cars are (mostly) moving slower, and the street design, while still not perfect, still signals to cars to slow down.

Yeah, I think you are mostly correct, but it is not exactly urban. I also think that what we are seeing is also being driven by the fact that 8th is a four lane highway. Even if you put sidewalks in at this point and put parking in the back (which are both great progress - don't get me wrong), the developments all still feel like they are being built for people to drive to. I think it would have been interesting to see what would have happened to some of these developments if the plan to push it to three lanes had gone through. You have a fair amount of density there now, but nobody walks and I'm not sure sidewalks are going to have a huge impact on this. People don't like walking next to four lane 50mph traffic. So what do you get in these new strip malls? A bunch of businesses that people drive to - medical offices, banks, verizon stores, etc.