Nashville City Guide - Getting Around

Downtown Nashville is quite small and easily managed on foot. The Metropolitan Transit Authority - MTA (tel: (615) 862 5950; website: www.nashvillemta.org) operates bus services in the greater Nashville area. A new downtown transit hub, Music City Central, is scheduled to be completed in autumn 2008, complete with retail stores and coffee shop.

The Opry Mills Express (bus 34) links Downtown with Opryland/Music Valley. The MTA offers a variety of discount passes on their network of local bus services. You can buy tickets upon boarding or at the ticket booths at 130 Nestor Street; on Deaderick between Fourth & Fifth Avenue North; or online. Buses can also be flagged down on their regular routes. MTA has various programmes catering to seniors, students and cyclists. All buses have bike racks and encourage cyclists to bring their bikes on board.

Nashville's new commuter rail service, the Music City Star (tel: (615) 862 8833; website: www.musiccitystar.org), runs between Lebanon and Riverfront Park, Nashville, Monday to Friday. Tickets are available from Ticket Vending Machines (TVMs) at each station, or from the Regional Transport Authority office at Sixth Floor, 501 Union Street, Nashville (corner of Fifth and Union).

There are several taxi services in Nashville but it is far easier to book one by telephone than to find one on the street. If you've made the booking some time ahead, it is sensible to telephone again on the day to confirm. Main firms include Allied Cab (tel: (615) 883 2323), Checker Cab (tel: (615) 256 7000), Music City Taxi (tel: (615) 262 0451) and Yellow Cab (tel: (615) 256 0101).

Nashville's roads have not really kept pace with the town's expansion and it is a long-standing joke that Nashville is difficult to navigate. There is just enough of a downtown grid system to lull drivers into a false sense of security, but then some streets simply stop, others change their names and some veer off across the river and head for Opryland. Most streets Downtown are one-way and signposting is poor. Other than this idiosyncrasy, driving is no better or worse than any other mid-size American city, although rush hours (0700-0900 and 1600-1800) are best avoided. Right turns on red lights are legal, unless a sign says otherwise.

Many of the special parking meter lanes in the city centre are inactive during rush hours - cars left there during these periods will be towed away. There is a large 24-hour public car park Downtown, at the junction of First Street South and Broadway, and numerous other parking lots and garages. On-street parking after business hours is usually free, but spaces fill up quickly with those visiting local music establishments, bars and restaurants.

Service providers include National/Alamo (tel: (615) 340 6546 or 1 800 462 5266; website: www.alamo.com), Avis (tel: (615) 361 1212; website: www.avis.com), Budget (tel: (615) 366 0822 or 1 800 527 0700; website: www.budget.com), Enterprise (tel: (615) 872 7722 or 1 800 261 7331; website: www.enterprise.com) and Thrifty (tel: (615) 275 4257 or 361 6050; website: www.thrifty.com).

To hire a car, visitors must have a valid driving licence from their home country, be at least 25 years old and have a major credit card for payment. Car hire prices do not include insurance and various levels of insurance are usually available as surcharges. Unlimited mileage is also recommended, if excursions are planned for outside the city.

Nashville has many parks popular for cycling, and it is a common sight to see groups of cyclists riding the scenic hills of Middle Tennessee. Cumberland Transit (tel: (615) 321 4069; website: www.cumberlandtransit.com), at 2807 West End Avenue, just opposite Centennial Park, is the place to hire high-end road bikes. Nashville Bicycle Company, 2817 West End Avenue (tel: (615) 321 5510; website: www.nashvillebike.com), hires high-end mountain bikes, and Eastside Cycles, 1012 Woodland Street (tel: (615) 469 1079; website: www.eastside-cycles.com), hires out cruisers and tandem bikes. Check with any of them for maps of bike trails in the area.

The Shelby Street Pedestrian Bridge offers a wonderful scenic view of downtown Nashville and the Cumberland River, and is open to pedestrians and cyclists every day from sunrise to sunset.