THE METROPOLITAN GOVERNMENT OF NASHVILLE AND DAVIDSON COUNTY
MEGAN BARRY, MAYOR
Subject: Green and Complete Streets Program
I, Megan Barry, Mayor of the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, by virtue of the power and authority vested in me, do hereby amend Executive Order No. 031 and find, direct and order the following:
I. The Metropolitan Government reaffirms and expands its commitment to encouraging a safe, reliable, efficient, integrated and connected system of Green and Complete Streets that promotes access, mobility and health for all people, regardless of their age, physical ability, or mode of transportation. The system fairly balances the accommodation of all users of the transportation system, including, but not limited to, people who walk, bike, take transit, drive, transport freight, operate emergency vehicles, or own adjacent land. Furthermore, the system improves environmental quality through the inclusion of green-street elements such as street trees, swales, native plants and grasses, that reduce storm-water runoff, optimize storm-water quality, and enhance natural environments.
II. “Public Ways” are public streets, roads, alleys, sidewalks, greenways and similar infrastructure.
III. “Green and Complete Streets” are a system of Public Ways that are designed, built, operated, and maintained as a system to improve environmental quality and to enable safe access for people of all ages and abilities to safely move along and across the street right-of-way, regardless of their mode of transportation.
IV. “Access Nashville 2040” and its component plans, including, but not limited to the “Major and Collector Street Plan,” has been adopted by the Planning Commission as a component of the General Plan, implementing Nashville’s Complete Streets Policy by establishing the use of a system of Public Ways that supports all users, regardless of age, ability, or mode of transportation in all contexts and community character types.
V. The Urban Street Design Guide is a publication of the National Association of City Transportation Officials, hereinafter referred to as “the NACTO Guide”, that has been endorsed by the United States Department of Transportation, the Tennessee Department of Transportation, and Metro Public Works, that provides design guidelines for green and complete street elements.
1. Policy.
All Metro-owned transportation facilities in the public right-of-way including, but not limited to, streets, bridges and all other connecting pathways shall be designed, constructed, operated, and maintained to enhance environmental quality and to allow users of all ages and abilities to travel upon them safely and independently. In conjunction with projects relating to Public Ways, departments, boards and commissions of the Metropolitan Government shall:
(a) Approach every transportation improvement project phase with the purpose to create greener, safer, and more accessible streets for all users. These phases include, but are not limited to: planning, programming, design, right-of-way acquisition, construction, reconstruction, operation and maintenance. Capital improvement projects, re-channelization projects, major maintenance projects, and projects handled by Metro contractors or other qualified consultants that will be accepted for maintenance by Metro Public Works must also be included;
(b) Within one year, complete interdepartmental updates or amendments to all current Public Way plans, guides, regulations, engineering specifications and details to conform to the street-element dimensions established in Access Nashville 2040 and its component plans, including Metro’s Major & Collector Street Plan, and authorize and encourage the appropriate use of green and complete street elements documented in the NACTO guide as components of Public Ways. Nothing in this clause shall preclude the Metropolitan Government from complying with the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, the Public Right of Way Accessibility Guidelines, or other design guidelines or standards which may be appropriate based on context or required by law;
(c) Publish online a summary-review of these interdepartmental updates or amendments to all Public Way plans, guides, regulations, engineering specifications and details in regards to Green and Complete Streets;
(d) Foster partnerships with the State of Tennessee, the Nashville Area MPO, neighboring communities and counties, utility providers, private parties, the Mayor’s Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Committee, business and school districts to develop facilities and agreements that further the Green and Complete Streets policy;
(e) Whenever applicable, incorporate and maintain street-trees and sustainable water-quality management principles as identified in the Low Impact Development Stormwater Management Manual of the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, the NACTO Guide, or other applicable documents to reduce pollutant, temperature, and runoff impacts to local waterbodies.
2. Exceptions.
Exceptions may be appropriate when:
(a) An affected roadway prohibits use by specified users (such as a limited-access highway or a pedestrian mall), in which case a greater effort shall be made to accommodate those specified users elsewhere;
(b) The activities are ordinary maintenance activities designed to keep assets in serviceable condition (e.g. mowing, cleaning, sweeping, spot repair, or other interim measures);
(c) Severe topographic, historical, natural resource, or right-of-way constraints preclude construction of complete street facilities without incurring extreme cost.
Any exception to the Green and Complete Streets Policy, including for eligible private projects, must receive an interdepartmental staff review and approval –among the Mayor's Director of Infrastructure, the Director of Public Works, the Director of Planning, and the Director of Metro Water Services– and be documented with publicly-available, supporting information that indicates a basis for the decision.
3. Implementation.
The Metropolitan Government shall view Green and Complete Streets as integral to everyday decision-making practices and processes. To this end:
(a) All departments, agencies, or committees will review and modify current standards, including but not limited to internal policies, codes and ordinances, to ensure they effectively implement Green and Complete Streets principles; and such groups shall incorporate Green and Complete Streets principles into all future planning documents, manuals, design standards, checklists, decision-trees, rules, regulations, programs, and other appropriate endeavors;
(b) The Metropolitan Government shall encourage staff professional development and training on the latest and best practices in multimodal-transportation and green-street infrastructure by attending conferences, classes, seminars, and workshops;
(c) Staff of the Metropolitan Government shall identify sources of funding for street improvements and maintenance programs, and recommend potential budgetary improvements to support and maintain Green and Complete Streets projects;
(d) The Public Works Department, the Planning Department, the Metropolitan Transit Authority, Metro Water Services, the Health Department, the Police Department, the Mayor’s Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Committee, and other applicable departments, boards, commissions, and committees of the Metropolitan Government, shall collaborate among themselves and with Nashville Electric Service and other utility/communications providers on engineering, educational, enforcement, and evaluation activities that support the implementation of the Green and Complete Streets Policy, with the goal of achieving zero traffic-related deaths on Nashville streets;
(e) The Metropolitan Government shall measure the success of this Green and Complete Streets policy using performance measures selected by the Planning Commission, and as-derived from NashvilleNext Guiding Principles including measures around equity. The performance measures shall be annually reported to the public at-large via a widely-accessible format, such as Nashville.gov and Metro’s Open Data Portal.
ORDERED, EFFECTIVE AND ISSUED:
Megan Barry
Metropolitan County Mayor
Date: May 23, 2016