Mayor Barry Picks Gallatin Road For First Nashville Light-Rail Project

NASHVILLE, TN — Nashville's first light-rail line will follow the Gallatin Road corridor, Metro Mayor Megan Barry announced during the annual State of Metro address at Bridgestone Arena Wednesday.

“We have plenty of work to do before we send that first train down the line,” Barry said. “We’ll have to have honest conversations, and some people aren’t going to be happy with every decision. But it’s time to get moving. We have to move forward. We have to act now to prevent congestion from threatening our prosperity and compromising our quality of life.”

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The Gallatin corridor is one of five identified by the mayor where she wants light rail — Charlotte Pike, Murfreesboro Pike, Nolensville Road and a northwest line towards Clarksville are the others.

“(W)e cannot break ground on every corridor simultaneously, and we cannot wait another year to start the process of building our first light rail," she said. Work began on the Gallatin Road line Wednesday, though Barry did not specify what that work was, what the termini of the line would be nor how much it would cost.

But she did lay out a plan for paying for it. Under the state's recently approved IMPROVE Act, local governments can, through referendum, add surcharges to taxes to fund transit projects. Barry said Metro could use that money to pay off the debt for the Gallatin line and as a funding stream for future projects.

Barry didn't specify which of the several tax streams — the law allows surcharges on sales, property, business, motor vehicle, rental car, hotel/motel and development taxes — but she planned to have it on the ballot during one of the three 2018 elections in May, August or November. Interestingly, it could compete with a push by anti-tax crusader and Sumner County resident Ben Cunningham, who announced he will lead a petition drive for a referendum on implementing a debt cap, largely in an effort to hamstring regional transit efforts.

In addition to the big-ticket announcement, Barry announced a tangible change for existing transit users: free transfers are coming to MTA buses.

Image via Metro Nashville