[1] The referendum asked Davidson County residents to approve a 0.5% increase in the sales tax to fund Mayor Freddie O'Connell's signature $3.1 billion transportation improvement program.
Despite launching initiatives like the Music City Star commuter rail in 2006 and multiple bus lines, modern efforts to overhaul the system, including Mayor Karl Dean's 2011 rapid bus plan and Mayor Megan Barry's 2017 light rail proposal, have failed, with state politics, budget shortfalls, and local opposition contributing to the collapse of these projects[6] A 2023 Forbes report listed Nashville as the U.S. city with the hardest commute, citing the city's poor walkability, lack of safety for bicycles, and low access to public transportation.
The TIP also seeks to address pedestrian and cyclist safety by implementing upgrades at 35 high-injury intersections and creating 39 miles of complete streets.
In the plan, these 54 miles of "All-Access Corridors" would feature dedicated transit lanes, new sidewalks, and signal priority systems that allow buses to move through intersections faster.
These include 24/7 routes with shorter wait times Regional service would be expanded with improvements to the WeGo STAR commuter rail system.
[12] Americans for Prosperity, the conservative advocacy group which campaigned heavily against the 2017 light rail proposal, opted against participating in the 2024 referendum.