Sidewalk Project #3 - Walking From Woodlawn to Vanderbilt, Nashville, TN

Heading out on a cold day in the Chariot.

Taking Andie (4 yo) to school on foot. Our route will be Woodlawn Av to Compton, Sharondale to Woodlawn (again) to Natchez Trace, Blair to 24th Av S.  Woodlawn will be the most difficult on foot as it is narrow. 

Start time 10:19a, 0.88 miles, 2023 steps.

Woodlawn is very narrow.  It functions as a cut through.  Therefore, drivers go pretty fast.  

Biggest lesson learned:  on streets that are narrow and function as cut through - waving at every driver reduces tension.

Woodlawn

                  There appears to be room for a sidewalk.

Turning onto Compton, heading north is a relief after Woodlawn.   

A walker is supposed to walk opposing traffic.  This sidewalk start will not require a mid-block dart/dash to reach its origin. 

Nice wide sidewalk near 440 overpass, heading north, Woodlawn

Heading north on Natchez 

Two things are quickly apparent on Natchez, heading north.    Sidewalk is infringed upon by utility poles/guy wire & trash bins in multiple locations.  The Trash bins occlude the sidewalk entirely.

Mid-sidewalk utility pole

Literally, cannot fit.

Bushes overlapping sidewalk.  

                            Sidewalk converted to a narrow path.

Turning west onto Blair, great wide sidewalk with green buffer.  

    Blair is perfect for walking and it shows - we passed plenty of pedestrians out walking. 

Sound Forest planting.  

 Nashville can be brutally hot in the summer months.  

Planting tree lined sidewalks would be ideal for pedestrian comfort.

                Tree lined sidewalks = Shade Parade!

Shade Parade!

Corner of 24th Av S and Belcourt.  

The utility pole leaves a blind spot for drivers who may be making a right turn from 24th onto Belcourt.  There is a moment, when you are completely behind the pole, that a driver would not be able to see you.  Drivers making turns are a source of potential conflict.  

50 minutes, 1.8 miles, 4117 steps.

A few more examples of trash cans occluding sidewalk.

Perk of a good long walk…sleeping baby.

Another example of utility pole and guy wires blocking sidewalk, Natchez

Fire hydrant mid-sidewalk, Natchez

Abutting a concrete wall, this utility pole and guy wire blocks walkway.  

             With a stroller, you must enter flow of traffic, Natchez

Note the many footsteps on this wide sidewalk
Overpass, 440, Woodlawn Dr.

On Compton, heading south.

Note the terminus of the sidewalk.  Due to sidewalk being on the west side of the road, to comply with pedestrian law of walking against traffic, one would have to perform a mid-block dart/dash to cross over.  This is one of the most prevalent sources of pedestrian/driver conflicts.