CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Mayor Joe Pitts will present a comprehensive transportation and road improvement strategy to the City Council at a special called meeting at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 9. The public is invited to view the presentation via Facebook Live or via a live stream on the City’s website.
The plan, titled “Transportation 2020+ -- Priority Decisions for Today, Tomorrow and Beyond,” is a strategic document designed to guide transportation infrastructure decisions within the fiscal reality of the City’s budget. The plan also estimates the costs associated with priority improvements, and outlines options to fund the plan’s goals.
“The Transportation 2020+ Strategy was prepared to set our priorities for streets, sidewalks, greenways and public transportation for the near future and beyond,” Mayor Pitts said. “We need a roadmap that we commit to follow, in broad terms, even as we move through elections and personnel changes. Otherwise, we’ll never get where we need to go.”
Mayor Pitts, leaders of the Clarksville Street Department, Clarksville Transit System, Clarksville Parks & Recreation, Clarksville Finance & Revenue, the City Communications office, the Regional Planning Commission, and the Metropolitan Planning Organization have gathered over the past several months to study Clarksville’s priority transportation needs and develop a strategy for action. Members of the past City Council were consulted during the ongoing planning, and members of the newly seated City Council will now join the process.
“We all agree that traffic congestion is getting worse,” Mayor Pitts said. “More people, more vehicles, and more housing and commercial construction mean finding the right solutions is critical to our quality of life. If our road network and transportation infrastructure is not expanded and improved, this undoubtedly will create more volume on area roadways, longer travel times, and an increase in the amount of miles traveled in congested conditions.”
To deal with those challenges, Transportation 2020+ is a transparent road map for future transportation investments.
Release of the plan is designed to start a public discussion between City leaders and community stakeholders to review and refine the Transportation 2020+ Strategy, and identify the right mix of revenue sources and projects to address Clarksville’s transportation needs. After Tuesday’s presentation, the full plan, maps, a survey about the strategy and more information will be available on the Mayor’s webpage at www.cityofclarksville.com/1043/Transportation-2020 .