[IMAGE]Nashville-Music-City-CircuitFULL.jpg[/IMAGE] On Wednesday, Nashville Mayor Karl Dean and several others took an inaugural ride on one of Nashville Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s (MTA) new green and blue Music City Circuit buses. The group rode the Bicentennial Mall route or Blue Circuit, which is one of two new, free routes traveling through downtown and the Gulch.

The service begins March 29 and is designed to help tourists, visitors, workers and residents reach sports and entertainment venues, downtown hotels, residences, and offices more quickly and easily.

“Our city is growing and our traffic congestion is growing along with us. This is a quality of life issue, an economic development issue, and an environmental issue. And the solution is public transit. But for transit to work, it has to be convenient for people to use,” Dean said. “This new service is a significant step forward in making public transit more convenient in our city.  Whether you live or work downtown or you’re visiting for business or pleasure, the Music City Circuit will get you to dining, shopping and entertainment throughout downtown and in the Gulch.”

The Music City Circuit will operate Monday through Saturday from early morning until late evening. Buses will travel two different downtown routes: one running north/south to the Bicentennial Mall and one running east/west into the Gulch, a LEED certified community. It will connect many key downtown destinations including the Farmers’ Market, the Schermerhorn Symphony Center, Riverfront Station, and the Gulch’s restaurants, bars and condominium towers and numerous points in between.

“We believe this new service will generate interest in our entire bus system,” MTA CEO Paul J. Ballard said. “The advantage for area residents and tourists is that they will be able to ride the Music City Circuit and not have to worry about the fare because it’s free. They will be so impressed with this service that they will want to get more familiar with our other bus routes.”