NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — It will be the main road through the center of the East Bank Development.
But how wide should East Bank Boulevard be?
Should it have six lanes or four?
They sound like simple questions but have ignited a passionate debate about more than a road.
Some believe the decision will set the tone for the entire East Bank development, including transit, walkability, and bike lanes.
But there are also questions about what is practical.
Fewer lanes for traffic might not be practical in front of the new indoor stadium that will be home to the Titans as well as countless concerts and events.
Real Estate researcher Ed Branding said for years community meetings focused on a walk-able, bike friendly East Bank.
Initial designs for the East Bank Boulevard showed a small, four-lane road that was the backbone of the development.
Those designs showed one lane of traffic as well as a dedicated bus lane in each direction.
But recently, that changed.
"The six-lane road has entered the conversation. It really wasn't part of the conversation before," Branding said.
The six lane proposal calls for keeping the dedicated bus lanes - and adding more car lanes - with the idea that a single lane for cars was not enough.
Jessica Dauphin with the Transit Alliance of Middle Tennessee sent an email to its members saying the original vision of the East Bank may be "drifting."
"This is really about how are we going to build forward as a region. Who are we going to build for, who are we going to prioritize this space for?" Dauphin said.
Dauphin supports the use of public transit and said building more car lanes makes the East Bank less walkable.
She said more car lanes will lead to more traffic.
"As a pedestrian, think pedestrian here, you've got six lanes plus a median to cross," Dauphin said.
Dauphin said she is not taking sides in the road debate, but does believe fewer car lanes would encourage more public transit, which would get people in and out of the stadium efficiently.
"We cannot build for today. We need to build for the future we want to see," Dauphin said.
Current plans call for parking downtown for big events and walking across the pedestrian bridge, but the latest traffic estimates show even with that, one lane for cars might not be enough.
"There are those that say, we don't want the cars. We want the cars over there (in downtown) and people walk across the pedestrian bridges," Ed Branding said.
At the most recent East Bank Authority meeting, several groups spoke against the six-lane proposal.
"More car lanes do not support efficiency, more buses do," said Eric Hoke of the Civic Design Center.
"If safety is really a priority for the East Bank Boulevard, it will not have six lanes," said Izzy Whit with Walk, Bike Nashville.
During the last election in 2023, Mayor O'Connell supported a four-lane concept according to a candidate questionnaire from Walk, Bike Nashville.
The option he chose had dedicated bike lanes on each side.
But the Mayor appeared to back away from that - his spokesperson said "once the mayor has evaluated all the information along with public feedback, he'll make a recommendation/decision" on the size of the road.
Branding said the road holds the key to other parts of the development.
"You have to figure out how wide the road is so you know how much land with which you have to work on both sides," Branding said.
But he added it's time to figure it out.
"At some point, you've got to quit collecting information and somebody or a number of somebodies have to go ahead and make a decision," Branding said.
Experts at the Nashville Department of Transportation are reviewing data and will make the final decision.
However, they answer to Mayor O'Connell, so his input is critical.
The size of the road is not voted on by the Metro Council or the East Bank Authority.
There is no time frame for the final decision.
