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WeGo reports record special-events ridership; $2 million smart grant to pilot transit signal priority on Murfreesboro Pike
Summary
Operations staff reported year-over-year increases for special-event ridership and described a US DOT smart-grant pilot to deploy transit signal priority and prototype headway management on Murfreesboro Pike and Charlotte Pike corridors.
WeGo operations staff told the board the agency supported about 189 special events in the prior year and highlighted year-over-year ridership gains at major events, including a 36% increase in after-6 p.m. New Year's Eve riders and a 58% jump in riders after midnight. At July 4 the agency reported transporting about 14,500 people to downtown fireworks and continued partnerships with the Tennessee Titans and Major League Soccer clubs that provided dedicated lanes and free fares on game days.
Operations manager Nick said special-event performance relied on interagency collaboration with Metro Police and event partners, staging dedicated loading zones and adjusting detours to reduce congestion. Staff also credited pre-event communications and proactive winter-weather scheduling that reduced service disruptions during a recent snow event while moving roughly 10,000 passengers.
In a related operational discussion, staff described a roughly $2,000,000 smart-grant award from USDOT to pilot transit signal priority and prototype headway management on Murfreesboro Pike (with work also referenced on Charlotte Pike via a separate FHWA-funded project). Staff said the technology will monitor gaps and trigger traffic lights to favor buses so that headways are more consistent (for example, a target 15-minute headway rather than clustered buses followed by long gaps). The pilot will test video feeds, signal triggers and corridor-level management and is also described as an early prototype for larger headway-management strategies; the agency said completed pilot work will inform future radio-room and corridor-management funding requests.
Board members asked how the project fits into broader corridor management and staff said it supports longer-term capital and corridor-management work while falling short of dedicated bus lanes. The project is positioned as a step toward more reliable, customer-friendly headway performance.
No formal action was required; the report was accepted for information.
