Corridor Facts

The South Corridor Transportation Study will be the first detailed evaluation of major transit investments in the south corridor.

Annual Average Daily Traffic

Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) along the corridor currently (2018) ranges from 131,870 between the downtown loop and Wedgewood Avenue to 170,925 just north of Old Hickory Boulevard to 74,699 just south of Interstate 840, near Thompson‘s Station and Spring Hill.

Current Travel Times

Current travel time from Franklin to the Nashville Central Business District (CBD) is 29 minutes (2010) and from Spring Hill to the Nashville CBD is 36 minutes (2010). According to the Statewide Travel Demand Model, based on projected growth patterns, these travel times will double to 59 minutes (a 103 percent increase) and 64 minutes (a 78 percent increase), respectively, by 2040. Throughout the corridor, single occupancy vehicles are the primary mode of transportation, comprising well over 80 percent of the traffic and contributing to the congestion problem.

Employment and Activity Centers

The traffic counts and current and future travel times are indicative of the employment and activity centers that are located along the South Corridor. These destinations, such as downtown Nashville, One Hundred Oaks Mall, the Brentwood Town Center, the Cool Springs area, and the GM Spring Hill Plant, are all major employment and activity centers that are reliant on moving people and goods efficiently and effectively in the South Corridor.

In addition, critical to understanding the current and future needs in the South Corridor is acknowledgment that reverse commuting and suburban to suburban commuting to these destinations is becoming increasingly more common as growth continues to expand throughout Middle Tennessee.

Also important is that trips related to recreation, shopping, or other activities, far outweigh the home to work and work to home trips that occur on a daily basis.

Existing Transit Service

While the corridor is currently served by RTA express bus service (91X - Franklin Express and 95X Spring Hill Express) during peak commuting times, significant transit investment along the corridor is a top priority due to existing / future congestion and the expected population and employment growth. Expanding transit along the south corridor is also an opportunity to provide enhanced connections to the Franklin Transit Authority, which operates a fixed route service in the Franklin and Cool Springs areas, as well as the Mule Town Trolley that serves the Columbia area.