Letter to the Editor: The Bus Stop Makes the Neighborhood

Hello everyone.

Nashville’s bus system is virtually invisible. Yes, you drive past the stops and see the vehicles on the road, but for the vast majority of Nashville residents who have never set foot on a bus and never will, functionally, buses don’t exist. Because you see them driving around town and understand them in this abstract sense, it’s hard to understand how expanding bus routes and increasing their hours of service might affect a neighborhood.

But lately, I’ve been doing some neighborhood math. Using the powers of journalism and critical thinking, it’s not hard to see how 24/7 bus service would change my small neighborhood.

I live near the Charlotte/White Bridge intersection. Charlotte (50) is one of the busiest bus lines in the city. Under the new transit plan, it should have continuous, 24-hour service. Recently, a new 24-hour 7-Eleven opened on White Bridge, right across from a 3 bus stop, which should also operate 24/7 if the transit referendum passes.

Diagonally across from all of this, near I-40, is a Waffle House that remains open 24/7, but since Covid, it only accepts takeout in the early hours of the morning to avoid late-night brawls. Across the street from that Waffle House is the former site of a White Castle (soon to be a Wells Fargo, I believe) that Whataburger pulled out of a few years ago after management discovered homeless people squatting in the abandoned building.

Away from major thoroughfares, some apartment complexes are plagued by malfunctions that sometimes spill out onto the street. I’ve had packages stolen from my porch, and it’s not uncommon to hear gunshots.

At first, the 7-Eleven was a welcome addition to the neighborhood (great drink selection). But the longer it’s been around, the more it feels like the kind of late-night haunt you avoid at all costs after a certain hour. Pairing a 24/7 convenience store with a 24/7 bus system that stops right in front of it probably won’t do anything to make it any more appealing. nicerAm I wrong about this?

Ahead.