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NDOT to launch opt‑in text traffic alerts for parts of Nashville; system excludes interstates
Summary
NDOT presenters described a text‑to‑subscribe traffic notification pilot using the PublicInput platform that will let residents opt in by texting area keywords to 73224. Notifications will target hazmat events, unplanned closures, and major planned events affecting travel lanes; interstates remain under TDOT’s SmartWay system.
The Nashville Department of Transportation presented a new opt‑in text notification system that will send traffic alerts to residents who subscribe by texting area keywords to 73224. Courtney Stone, director of strategic communications, and Nandi Nkowa, public information coordinator at the Traffic Management Center (TMC), outlined criteria, coverage, and a near‑term rollout.
Stone said the TMC launched last October and that the department wants direct lines to residents rather than relying solely on earned or social media. The service will use PublicInput as the delivery platform and is opt‑in only. Nkowa described the types of incidents that will trigger messages: hazmat or environmental hazards, unplanned events that close roadways or create unsafe conditions, and planned mass traffic events when at least one travel lane on a multilane road is blocked for more than four hours or a roadway is fully closed for more than 30 minutes.
The system focuses on local surface streets; interstate notifications remain the responsibility of the Tennessee Department of Transportation’s SmartWay system. Subscribers will choose areas mapped to community planning boundaries and may subscribe to multiple areas; NDOT gave the example of texting “EastNash” to 73224 to receive East Nashville alerts. NDOT plans to launch the platform on May 7 ahead of a busy May 10 calendar of large events and offered to provide councilmembers with infographics and a small beta group for initial testing.
Brad Fries, TMC staff, said integration with TDOT’s SmartWay has been discussed and may be possible through future software integrations. The presentation drew council questions about coverage of state routes and how the system fits with other alerting systems; NDOT said state routes such as parts of Gallatin Pike would be included but that interstates would not. No formal action was required; the department proceeded with a planned rollout.
