• The city is experimenting with a pedestrian-only zone on Gay Street during select weekends, but experts say open streets need activities to be successful.
  • The experiment has rekindled conversations about open container, which the city decided against when a proposal was made for Market Square in 2021.
  • A study found that improving streets for walking and cycling resulted in a 216% increase in people stopping, sitting and socializing.
  • Temporary changes to traffic flow have redirected vehicles to nearby parking, and some people are hopeful the experiment could cut down on excessive car noise.

On a damp November night, South Gay Street had more puddles than people taking advantage of its temporary pedestrian-only 400 block between Mast General Store and Cruze Farm. Those who did venture beyond the barricades were met with the type of fun typically experienced in an above-ground pool: We’re in here, now what?

Pool toys help. So, in similar fashion, Suttree’s High Gravity Tavern brought foosball tables into the street the following night, just as it did in 2018 when Gay Street was closed for construction. Cornhole boards were placed in front of Skybox Sports Bar and Grill, and football fans perused the block before stopping in businesses following Tennessee’s loss to Georgia on Nov. 18.

Is that success? It’s hard to tell without a few more weeks under the city’s belt, but experts in pedestrian-only streets say these experiments are most successful when they feature activities for people to enjoy. It could be the difference between creating a waterpark of an experience or a glorified bathtub.

Business owners in the 400 block think Gay Street needs more foot traffic. Despite being in the heart of downtown’s main thoroughfare, their businesses compete every day with the pedestrian draw of Market Square just to the west.

Visit Knoxville counts pedestrian traffic in given areas using Placer.ai, which uses machine learning and data science to generate analytics. The…

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