Nashville Officials Advocate For Increased Traffic Enforcement As Pedestrian Deaths Skyrocket

Image Credit: Canva

The Tennessee Conservative [By Olivia Lupia] –

After reducing the city’s traffic stop numbers by almost 95% in the last decade, some Nashville council members and officials are now advocating for a reversal of these policies as pedestrian deaths climb.

Since 2016, Nashville’s pedestrian and cyclist deaths have more than doubled and Tennessee’s total road traffic victim count hovers around 1,000 deaths annually. 

The 2018 Policing Project report, which was invited by the Nashville Mayor’s office to, “advise in the development of strategies to address racial disparities and improve community-police relations in the city,” asserted, “traffic stops are not an effective strategy for reducing crime” and that there were too many “unexplained” racial disparities in traffic stops. 

The report offered suggested changes to departmental procedures including reducing the number of traffic stops, acknowledging the disproportional effects of traffic stops on black residents, and reevaluating use of force policies, many of which have since been implemented or readjusted by the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department (MNPD).

Yet police officials now claim that traffic fatalities jumped nearly 75% between 2018-2023 as enforcement declined. With the trend beginning to reverse this year as traffic enforcement has seen an uptick, some Metro council members and officials have become supportive and encouraging of these reinforcement efforts.

MNPD spokesperson Don Aaron said in a statement. “…Traffic enforcement is a necessity given Nashville’s growth and driving behaviors.” 

District 12 Metro Councilmember Erin Evans said, “People are not afraid of being pulled over by the police anymore. They’re not afraid of punitive outcomes from bad driving behaviors like speeding, running stop signs, running red lights. … I do believe we have swung too far in the opposite direction. I don’t know what the right answer is, but the current path is not ideal.”

Even Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell has supposedly observed a “slight increase” in high-speed reckless driving on local roads, though he has only come by the information “anecdotally”. 

Councilmembers Jeff Eslick (Dist. 11) and Jacob Kupin (Dist. 19) have been the most outspoken on the issue, calling for more enforcement and meeting with police leadership, even sponsoring a resolution, “urging the [MNPD] and the Nashville Department of Transportation and Multimodal Infrastructure to increase traffic enforcement.”

Memphis is a direct reflection of the impacts of reducing traffic enforcement, as evidenced by its “Driving Equality Act”  which prohibited local police from making most basic traffic stops.

Media Claims Bill To Combat “Driving Equality Act” Will “Undo Strides In Public Safety”

Ultimately, this act sparked a bill in the legislature nullifying this and any other act seeking to prevent law enforcement from fully fulfilling their lawful duties.

Gov. Lee Signs Bill To Combat “Driving Equality Act” That Media Has Claimed Will “Undo Strides In Public Safety”

A positive effect of maintaining or increasing traffic enforcement policies is exemplified by an incident in Mt. Juliet which began as a simple traffic stop for an expired tag which ultimately led to the arrest of a wanted felon and sex offender.

Traffic Stop In Mt. Juliet Leads To Arrest Of Child Offender

As crime continues to skyrocket across the state, the Nashville and Memphis statistics and the successes of departments who have been intentional about traffic policing could be viewed as a strong case in favor of renewed resources and efforts for traffic enforcement. 

Olivia Lupia is a political refugee from Colorado who now calls Tennessee home. A proud follower of Christ, she views all political happenings through a Biblical lens and aims to utilize her knowledge and experience to educate and equip others. Olivia is an outspoken conservative who has run for local office, managed campaigns, and been highly involved with state & local GOPs, state legislatures, and other grassroots organizations and movements. Olivia can be reached at olivia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.