History

In April, 2009, a group of leaders from Nashville and Middle Tennessee, visited Denver, Colorado, as a part of an inter-city visit arranged by the Greater Nashville Chamber of Commerce.  A focus of that visit was mass transit in the Denver region.  Specific questions were asked about how citizen support for dedicated funding in Denver and the surrounding communities was obtained. Denver area leaders responded that the creation of the Transit Alliance for the Denver region was critical in providing a forum for education about mass transit, including the need for dedicated revenues.  Parallel to the creation of the Transit Alliance was the creation of a Denver region “Mayors Caucus” bringing together for the first time the elected leaders of the counties and cities of the Denver area to seek consensus on regional issues, including the development of mass transit options.

Upon returning to Nashville, the elected officials and other leaders on the Denver visit quickly committed to creation of both a “Mayors Caucus” and a “Transit Alliance” for Middle Tennessee.  Mayor Joann Graves,  City of Gallatin, became the first chair of the Mayors Caucus.  Mayor Karl Dean, Nashville, and others prevailed on Charles Bone, Sumner County, to become the organizing chairperson of the Transit Alliance of Middle Tennessee.  In late 2009, the Transit Alliance of Middle Tennessee was formally established as a 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization.  An initial 30-member Board of Directors agreed to serve as leadership for the Alliance.

Early in 2010, Vanderbilt University committed $100,000 per year for three years as a part of the initial funding for the Alliance. Other generous donors also contributed funding in order to fully move the Alliance from a concept to reality. In April, 2010, Ed Cole was hired as the first Executive Director of the Alliance.  Previously, Cole was the first Chief of Environment and Planning for the Tennessee Department of Transportation.

In May, 2010, the Transit Alliance of Middle Tennessee was a participant in the “Convening the Region Summit” held in Nashville and attended by representatives from all ten Middle Tennessee counties.  The Summit launched the involvement of leaders across the region in the process of developing support for a long-range strategy for regional transportation, including the first-ever regional  “transit vision.”   The Transit Alliance of Middle Tennessee is now an active part of that strategy.