Project Feature Expansion Pillar

Celebrate streets as places that address neighborhood needs and facilitate community interactions.

In 2020, between E Trinity Lane and the I-65 entrance ramp on Dickerson Pike, there were 5 pedestrian deaths, and in 2021, that same area took the lives of another 2 pedestrians, totaling 7 people in just 2 years. While 1 death is too many, it may be an accident. When there are 7 deaths on the same 2 mile stretch of road, this is a design problem, and the problem is that Dickerson Pike is designed for fast moving cars.

To propose solutions to this design problem, the Design Studio partnered with Walk Bike Nashville to study pedestrian safety along Dickerson Pike between Trinity Lane and Ewing Drive. Made possible with a grant from the Tennessee Department of Health, we began with a community engagement process to understand where those who live and work along this segment of Dickerson Pike need to go, where they need to cross the street, and what barriers they currently face to feeling safe.

After hearing from Walk Bike Nashville’s Communications + Advocacy Director, Lindsey Ganson, the

Nashville Youth Design Team felt strongly that they wanted to get involved in this project. The Team designed a Glow in the Dark Crosswalk intervention at Dickerson Pike and Hart Lane.

While the Pedestrian Safety Action Plan is still being completed, the Nashville Youth Design Team’s intervention got a lot of press. Their crosswalk installation with painted pedestrian bulb-outs was the first and only time the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) has ever allowed a tactical urbanism installation on a state road, highlighting the youth’s ability to inspire them into action. TDOT also cited this intervention as the reason Dickerson Pike will now be receiving a $30 million dollar Complete Streets implementation on the same 2-mile stretch of study area.