NDOT proposes single speed cushion, radar signs and flashing school zone on Bowling Avenue; neighbors divided ahead of mailed ballot

The Nashville Department of Transportation on Tuesday presented a revised traffic-calming plan for Bowling Avenue that would add a radar-feedback speed sign and a flashing school-zone sign near West End Middle School and install a single set of speed cushions on the stretch between Central Avenue and Murphy Road.

NDOT consultant Jeff Hammond said the revised plan responds to feedback from an earlier neighborhood meeting and aims to slow motorists in the corridor while avoiding some placements that would interfere with driveways or existing intersections. "We will put that section 32 feet south of the driveway at 118," Hammond said, describing the planned location for the speed cushion.

The plan matters to residents because Bowling Avenue runs from the West End signal north to Murphy Road and passes a school zone; neighbors said speeding and drivers ignoring stop signs have created safety concerns for children and people walking in the area. Hammond said NDOT uses a data-driven prioritization process and reported an 80th-percentile speed of about 32 mph on the street and roughly 4,000 vehicles per day — below the department's 5,000-vehicles-per-day threshold for installing speed cushions.

Hammond described the department's tools and why the team proposed the mix of devices. "What we are proposing to do is to make…