Committee approves substituted resolution urging targeted traffic enforcement; asks MNPD and NDOT for plans

The Metropolitan Nashville-Davidson County Council Public Health & Safety Committee approved Resolution RS2024-905 as substituted, urging the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department (MNPD) to increase traffic enforcement focused on speeding, driving under the influence, reckless driving and distracted driving, and asking the Nashville Department of Transportation and Multimodal Infrastructure (NDOT) to submit a traffic‑calming plan.

The substitute narrowed the original language after committee members raised concerns about returning to past traffic‑stop practices that community reports tied to disproportionate enforcement in minority neighborhoods. The committee adopted the substitute 7–0 with one abstention, and later moved the resolution forward as substituted; the final motion carried.

Public commenter Davy Tucker said he had changed his view on the legislation and supported the Toombs amendment, telling the committee, “Initially, I was opposed to this legislation, but now I'm in support of the Toombs amendment.” Tucker also cited the city’s 2018 policing project report, saying the city paid “in excess of $200,000” for a study that he said found roughly 500,000 police stops, 68% of which were for nonmoving violations; he told the committee that he found no data tying a drop in traffic stops to an increase in pedestrian deaths.

Council member Porterfield, who moved the substitute, described its aims: “The substitute focuses MNPD on the 4 areas that they are actually already doing, which is speeding, DUI, reckless driving, and distracted driving,” and said it requires MNPD to submit a plan outlining how it will conduct targeted enforcement. Porterfield said she worked with the mayor’s office, MNPD and NDOT on the substitute’s language.

Council member Timmons and Councilwoman Toombs urged the committee to consider the city’s recent history with traffic stops. Toombs and other members cited a 2016 “Driving While Black” report and the 2018 policing project, saying those prior reviews documented high stop rates and disparate treatment of Black and Hispanic drivers. Toombs quoted findings from the earlier report, saying that between 2011 and 2015 MNPD conducted about 7.7 times more traffic stops annually than the national average, that consent searches “failed to yield incriminating evidence 88.4% of the time,” and that many stops resulted only in warnings.

Committee members emphasized the substitute’s effort to avoid resuming broad enforcement of nonmoving violations while addressing pedestrian safety. The substitute asks MNPD to provide a written plan for targeted enforcement and asks NDOT to present a plan to improve physical roadway conditions for all users.

The substitute passed in committee with seven votes in favor, none opposed and one abstention; the committee then moved the substituted resolution forward and recorded the final motion as carried. The resolution’s sponsors as listed on the agenda are Eslic, Styles, Coopin, Huffman, Horton and Bradford.

The committee did not record individual roll‑call votes in the transcript; the committee chair announced the substitute passed 7–0–1 and that the subsequent motion to move the bill as substituted carried.