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Metro Council seeks to require permits, safety standards for large party vehicles





The Metro Council voted recently to ban alcohol on party buses.Larry McCormack / Main Street Nashville

The Metro Council voted recently to ban alcohol on party buses.Larry McCormack / Main Street Nashville

Party buses and barges that carry loads of alcohol-imbibing tourists down Lower Broadway could face local regulation if a Metro Council bill filed Friday is adopted.

Sponsored by council member Freddie O’Connell, whose district includes much of downtown, the bill seeks to regulate larger transpotainment vehicles like party buses, tractors and hot tubs in a similar way as smaller vehicles like pedal cabs and carriages are already regulated.

It would also ban consumption of alcohol on transpotainment vehicles that are not enclosed.

“As with too many disruptive industries, the operators of many of these vehicles have exploited our legal framework and become worse than nuisances; they’ve become safety hazards,” O’Connell said in a statement on social media. “I’m confident Metro has enough legal authority to better protect our residents and quality of life.”

In July, a tourist fell off a party bus and was run over on Lower Broadway. The incident sparked new calls from local officials to regulate the industry. Last month, the Metro Transportation Licensing Commission declined all permit applications for new transportation entertainment vehicles.

 

 

The bill establishes safety standards for such vehicles and would require vehicles and their drivers to be licensed annually by the licensing commission. Vehicle drivers would be required to undergo a criminal background check and attend a hospitality training program with safety instruction before being licensed.

O’Connell said he consulted with attorneys for the Metro Council, the Metro Legal Department, state partners and downtown stakeholders, including the Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp. and The DISTRICT Nashville.

The proposal quickly gained support of several Metro Council members on Friday, including Bob Mendes, Kathleen Murphy, Emily Benedict, Dave Rosenberg and Erin Evans.

Safe Fun Nashville, a local coalition of residents and businesses advocating for safety reforms for transpotainment vehicles, also applauded O’Connell’s proposal.

“We’re proud to see a real first step to making downtown a safer place to live, work, learn, and play. Council Member O’Connell’s legislation will not only close loopholes that have allowed the worst offenders among transportainment to run rampant, but will ensure that Nashville will remain a vibrant, safe place for visitors and residents alike,” Jim Schmitz, co-organizer for Safe Fun Nashville, said in a statement. “Now it’s time for the rest of Metro Council and Mayor Cooper to pass this legislation and clean up the party vehicle scene before someone else ends up under the wheels of a bus.”

Nearly 2,500 people have signed Safe Fun Nashville’s petition calling for state and local safety standards for transpotainment vehicles.

Council member Sean Parker has also filed a bill that would ban alcohol on party vehicles, which passed on first consideration last Tuesday. It would need to pass two more votes before becoming law.

State law allows local governments to regulate vehicles that carry fewer than 14 passengers, including pedicabs, pedal taverns and horse-drawn carriages. But currently, it prohibits regulation of transpotainment vehicles if they carry 15 or more passengers — that excludes most party buses and larger vehicles.

Several recent attempts by Metro Council members to regulate transpotainment vehicles have failed.

In recent years, state lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have sought to change the state law barring local regulation of the industry.

Mayor John Cooper has long supported safety reforms for the industry, and he pledged Friday to continue to work to accomplish required changes at the state level.

“Now is the time to address the flagrant quality of life issues posed by aspects of the entertainment transportation industry,” Cooper said in a statement released Friday. “I will continue to work with stakeholders to ensure a successful outcome in the upcoming state legislative session.”

This year a state bill filed by Sen. Jeff Yarbro, D-Nashville, was heard in one committee but deferred to the 2022 legislative session. Yarbro’s bill would allow local governments to regulate transportation entertainment services, as long as they comply with state safety rules.

Gov. Bill Lee recently said he would be open to considering a change, but his support would depend on the particulars of any bill filed.

“I would certainly want to look at it,” Lee told reporters during a briefing Thursday afternoon. “There are times when local decision-making is the best way forward in a decision, and there are times when the state has to intervene.”

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