NDOT proposes speed cushions and two radar feedback signs for Amelie Drive; residents warned ballots require two-thirds approval

David Grieves, an engineer with the Nashville Department of Transportation, presented final construction plans Feb. 20 for traffic calming on Amelie Drive, proposing modular speed cushions at several locations along the corridor and two radar feedback signs facing uphill. Grieves said the ballot will be open for six weeks to property owners whose parcels touch the affected right of way; two-thirds of returned ballots must be “yes” for the vertical measures (the speed cushions) to proceed.

The project is part of NDOT's Neighborhood Street Traffic Calming (NSTC) program, which focuses on residential streets and uses engineering, education and enforcement to reduce vehicle speeds. "Of the three, NDOT has the greatest ability to affect engineering," Grieves said, adding that the program prefers corridor-length treatments over one-block fixes. He said Amelie Drive was selected in August 2024 from about 575 candidate streets and is in the design phase.

Nut graf: The proposed measures target a hill on Amelie Drive where NDOT recorded an 85th-percentile speed just north of 40 mph, well above the typical 25 mph neighborhood limit. NDOT’s limited before-and-after study of comparable treatments…