Nashville has grown quickly while keeping one of the thinnest transit networks of any large American city, and a 2018 transit referendum failed decisively. In 2024 Metro Nashville tried again with a narrower, more concrete package called Choose How You Move: sidewalks, upgraded traffic signals, safety improvements, transit centers and more frequent WeGo bus service.
The funding mechanism was a half-cent increase in the local option sales tax, raising the combined state and local rate in Davidson County from 9.25% to 9.75%, to pay for a roughly $3.1 billion program (Choose How You Move summary; Tennessee Lookout voter guide).
Supporters argued that Nashville could not keep adding residents and tourists without dedicated local money for buses, sidewalks and signal timing, and that state and federal grants usually require a local match Nashville did not have. Opponents objected to using a sales tax, which takes a larger share of income from lower-earning households, and questioned whether bus service in a low-density, car-oriented city would attract enough riders to justify the cost.
The measure went to Davidson County voters on November 5, 2024. Because Tennessee law channels this kind of transit funding through a referendum, the decision belonged to voters rather than to the Metro Council alone, which is why the campaign focused on concrete deliverables such as sidewalk miles and signal upgrades.
This debate is archived as resolved. You can still argue the merits, and readers preparing for similar votes in their own city may find our explainer on public transit funding and how city budgets work useful, or look up officials in the Nashville directory.
