It's 7:00AM and I'm headed to the gym opposite the Nashville commuter traffic on the bypass (Hwy. 386). Brake lights are flashing at Exit 6, and all of these drivers will need another 45 minutes to cover the 18 miles to Nashville at the height of rush hour. That is unless there is rain, snow or a hiccup at Trinity Lane.
Normally there are about 75,000 cars a day running the two lanes of 386 according to the Tennessee Department of Transportation. There are alternatives to 386 like Gallatin Rd. (Hwy. 31) or Long Hollow Pike (Hwy 257), but 386 with no traffic lights or stop signs is the choice of most commuters. One of Hendersonville's and Gallatin's greatest assets is also its greatest liability for commuter traffic, Old Hickory Lake. The lake forms the southern border of all of Sumner County, and there are only two bridges spanning Old Hickory within our border.
So why do commuters go through so much stress time and expense to live in Sumner County and commute to Nashville? The simple answer is that it is worth it.
Some people move here for the great public and private schools, some for the lake, parks, and recreation, some for the lower taxes and others for the variety of houses in new safe neighborhoods. There are many compelling reasons to live in Sumner County that make the commute worthwhile.
Actually the commute to Nashville is a lot easier now than when I first moved here 33 years ago. At that time there were only two lanes of I65 into Nashville, a one lane bridge (no kidding) on Long Hollow Pike, and no Hwy 386. We have better commuting now, and we are better off than many of Nashville's other commuter cities, but the only way we can keep pace is with mass transit. Stop 30 road in Hendersonville was named for what used to be the 30th stop on the Nashville Commuter Train in the 1930's. It is time we visited their old ideas.
Commuting has never been a picnic even in the days of Hendersonville's first settler Daniel Smith. Daniel Smith's house Rock Castle still stands proud today, but two of his carpenters and his son-in-law were killed by Indians on their commute across the county. The only traffic jams were the herds of buffalo that wandered the valleys, but there were numerous other stresses and hazards from the river and animal trails that were the first area commuter routes in the 1790's.
So as you make your commute to Nashville, remember no texting, checking your emails or traveling too close to the car in front of you... and watch out for the buffalo and arrows.
Normally there are about 75,000 cars a day running the two lanes of 386 according to the Tennessee Department of Transportation. There are alternatives to 386 like Gallatin Rd. (Hwy. 31) or Long Hollow Pike (Hwy 257), but 386 with no traffic lights or stop signs is the choice of most commuters. One of Hendersonville's and Gallatin's greatest assets is also its greatest liability for commuter traffic, Old Hickory Lake. The lake forms the southern border of all of Sumner County, and there are only two bridges spanning Old Hickory within our border.
So why do commuters go through so much stress time and expense to live in Sumner County and commute to Nashville? The simple answer is that it is worth it.
Some people move here for the great public and private schools, some for the lake, parks, and recreation, some for the lower taxes and others for the variety of houses in new safe neighborhoods. There are many compelling reasons to live in Sumner County that make the commute worthwhile.
Actually the commute to Nashville is a lot easier now than when I first moved here 33 years ago. At that time there were only two lanes of I65 into Nashville, a one lane bridge (no kidding) on Long Hollow Pike, and no Hwy 386. We have better commuting now, and we are better off than many of Nashville's other commuter cities, but the only way we can keep pace is with mass transit. Stop 30 road in Hendersonville was named for what used to be the 30th stop on the Nashville Commuter Train in the 1930's. It is time we visited their old ideas.
Commuting has never been a picnic even in the days of Hendersonville's first settler Daniel Smith. Daniel Smith's house Rock Castle still stands proud today, but two of his carpenters and his son-in-law were killed by Indians on their commute across the county. The only traffic jams were the herds of buffalo that wandered the valleys, but there were numerous other stresses and hazards from the river and animal trails that were the first area commuter routes in the 1790's.
So as you make your commute to Nashville, remember no texting, checking your emails or traveling too close to the car in front of you... and watch out for the buffalo and arrows.
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