NASHVILLE – WeGo Public Transit officials, lawmakers, and invited guests broke ground on the Dr. Ernest Rip Patton, Jr. North Nashville Transit Center this morning, marking the start of construction for its latest neighborhood transit center.
The project is part of an overall effort to increase access to public transit across Nashville while reducing the necessity of transferring Downtown at WeGo Central. It will include a waiting room, restrooms, Wi-Fi, and multiple bus bays to connect several routes across town. It will also have real-time bus arrival information, QuickTicket vending machines, bicycle storage, scooter corrals, and pick up/drop off locations for Lyft, Uber, taxis, and other rideshare operators.
“This transit center is just the latest step in a long-term plan to better connect Nashville neighborhoods through public transit,” WeGo CEO Steve Bland said. “It’s an improvement in our service and in the customer experience. We plan to add more transit centers and increased connections across the city.”
The center is a total investment of $17 million and is in alignment with nMotion, the Middle Tennessee Region’s adopted 25-year integrated and multimodal transportation strategy. This will be one of the first of several centers for Nashville as identified in the nMotion plan and the Metro Nashville Transportation Plan. Funding partners for the project include Metro Nashville, the Tennessee Department of Transportation, and the Federal Transit Administration of the United States Department of Transportation.
“A reliable, fast and affordable transit network is essential to creating a Nashville that works for everyone,” said Mayor John Cooper. “This new transit center in North Nashville will better connect neighborhoods that have been under-resourced for decades and will significantly reduce commute times for residents – for many Nashvillians that will mean shaving 20 to 30 minutes in one direction. For a city on the move like Nashville, this is a huge step in the right direction toward a more efficient and reliable transit system.”
Once completed, the center will greatly improve access to job opportunities, workforce skills training for residents, and provide better access to health care and other needed services, creating a level of equity, through transit offerings.
Nashville MTA Board Chair Gail Carr-Williams said “Public transit provides access for many aspects of our lives; it safely gets us to work, entertainment, family gatherings, and, of course, health care appointments. The Dr. Ernest Rip Patton, Jr. North Nashville Transit Center will serve not only as a transit hub but also a thriving community hub for Nashville residents for many years to come.”
Work on the transit center began several years ago with a community advisory board and several community meetings. The Metro Nashville City Council voted to name the center for Civil Rights activist Dr. Ernest Rip Patton, Jr. Members of the Patton family attended the ceremony.
The center will also feature space for art and historical displays. The community is assisting in the curation effort which will be led by the Don Hardin Group. It is designed to be a place to share the past, present, and future of North Nashville, and the lives of the people who have made a difference in the community.
Completion of the project is anticipated for Spring of 2024.
For more information about the Center visit North Nashville Transit Center – Projects | WeGo Public Transit (wegotransit.com)
