NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Some Bordeaux neighbors say speeding drivers are creating safety concerns in their neighborhood, especially during busy school and work commutes when children walk along residential streets.
Gloria Blair has lived on Mayer Lane for decades. She said the area around Bordeaux Gardens Park looks much different from when she first moved there.
“Now it’s getting bigger, noisier and faster, and it’s just wild,” Blair said.
Blair and neighbor Mamie Farmer said speeding has made everyday activities, from pulling out of a driveway to riding a bicycle, feel unsafe.
“I have a bicycle and I’m not even comfortable riding my bicycle,” Blair said.
“It’s hard to even pull out of the driveway because you don’t know, with them speeding up and down the street, they’re going to hit you when you try to pull out.” Farmer said she is particularly concerned about children in the neighborhood.
“We don’t have a speed limit, no sidewalks, and I’m concerned about my kids,” Farmer said. “We want to slow the traffic down a little bit.”
Residents believe some drivers are using Mayer Lane to avoid traffic-calming measures on nearby streets.
“They have started cutting through our streets because speed bumps are all around us, and they’re driving fast, and it’s all about safety,” Blair explained.
A Nashville Department of Transportation traffic-calming map shows speed cushions on several nearby roads, including Snell Boulevard, Panorama Drive, Hinkle Drive and Hydes Ferry Road. A project on Viking Road has not been selected.
NDOT’s Neighborhood Street Traffic Calming Program identifies and prioritizes residential streets for improvements aimed at lowering vehicle speeds and making streets safer for people who are not driving.
Traffic-calming measures can include speed cushions, radar signs, narrowed lanes, medians and other street-design changes. NDOT’s toolkit says the appropriate treatment depends on factors including a street’s geometry, posted speed limit and traffic volume.
NDOT accepts applications for its Neighborhood Street Traffic Calming Program year-round and selects projects twice a year. The department says demand for traffic-calming projects exceeds the resources available to plan, design and construct them.
Blair said she has not yet applied through the program. Instead, she contacted North Nashville Reporter Aaron Cantrell hoping to bring attention to the problem.
“We reached right out to you,” Blair said. Now, she hopes that attention will lead to action.
“We’re all in this together on this street, and we want something done, please,” Blair said.
NewsChannel 5 reached out to NDOT to find out whether the department has received any previous traffic-calming requests for Mayer Lane and whether the street has previously been evaluated.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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