What does this cost?

Open Streets events are free! There’s no ticket or registration required to attend. We encourage visitors to check out shops and restaurants along the route, but we aim to create an environment where you don’t have to spend money to have a great time.

What do I need to bring?

Whatever you want! Open Streets are places for casual hangs, neighborhood exploration, and people-powered transportation. You can claim space on the street for your own personal parklet and spend the whole day there, or you can saddle up on a bike and ride on car-free streets. Don't forget to take care of yourself, especially for events under the summer sun: be sure to bring water and sunscreen!

My business is on the Open Street. Can I stay open?

Yes! We encourage businesses local to the area to come out and engage with their community. Feel free to think creatively and bring whatever you have to offer to the streets. Sign up to be an event partner to be featured on our website — we love introducing attendees to local businesses!

How do I get there?

We encourage attendees to use transit or people-powered transportation like bikes to attend Open Streets. Since there’s no official start point to the route, you can start and end your visit wherever makes sense for you.

By bike:

We love biking — it’s in the name of our organization! We aim to host Open Streets in neighborhoods that are served by bikeways, greenways, and other biking infrastructure so that riding a bike to the event is a safe, comfortable option. The Nashville Groove Map shows existing cycling infrastructure to help you plan your ride.

By transit:

Open Streets events are a great time to try out Nashville’s bus system. WeGo Public Transit offers a trip planner to help you know which stops and routes to use. You can also try the Transit app or your smartphone’s maps app for real-time departure information.

By car:

There is no parking allowed on the Open Street during the event. Free and paid lots are available near the routes. For downtown events, most state-owned lots are free and open to the public on weekends, and Nashville Downtown Partnership has an interactive map of garages and surface lots.

We reserve ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) parking areas along the route for Open Streets. For more information, contact [email protected].

Will I be able to drive on the road during Open Streets?

Car use is not allowed on the route to demonstrate ways cities can function better with less car dependency. Once the road is blocked off as an Open Street, car access during the allotted time will be limited to security-escorted resident access only. We work closely with the Nashville Department of Multimodal Transportation and Infrastructure to ensure alternate routes around the closures, and emergency vehicles will still have access.

Where can I use the restroom or get water?

Check the current event page for information about restrooms and public water fountains at the upcoming event. You can of course use the restroom at local businesses you visit along the route, but please be a respectful visitor when doing so.

Are outside vendors allowed at Open Streets?

Open Streets are meant to celebrate the neighborhood they take place in. Because of this, we highlight businesses local to the community and do not invite outside, for-profit businesses to activate on the event footprint.

Open Streets often invite community partners to activate along the road. These partners are most often non-profit organizations and community entities, and they do not sell anything during the event. We only invite partners that share our mission and vision for a more inclusive and thriving city.

Is this event rain or shine?

Yes! Walk Bike Nashville may cancel or postpone an Open Streets event in the event of dangerous weather, but in general, Open Streets are rain or shine.

What does car-lite mean?

When hosting Open Streets, we work with the Nashville Department of Transportation and Multimodal Infrastructure to create car-free and car-lite routes, using signage, temporary barriers, and security personnel to keep cars from driving on the street. For car-free streets, cars will be completely off the streets. For car-lite streets, local residents may be allowed to drive cars on the event footprint as needed and at a walking pace.

When Open Streets are on roads with signalized intersections, anticipate cross traffic at these intersections. Keeping the flow of vehicle traffic in some locations is one way we demonstrate how Open Streets can supplement, and not hinder, the way people move around the city. Security officers will be posted at every intersection, but attendees must obey traffic signals, because many intersections will allow cross-traffic from cars. If you are approaching a signalized intersection and the light is red, do not cross until the light turns green, or a security officer tells you it is safe to cross.

I have another question.

Contact us at [email protected]. We'd love to help you!