Michael Cass

mcass@tennessean.com

Late last week, a mass email paid for by Mayor Karl Dean's remaining campaign funds urged supporters to contact state lawmakers on behalf of the Amp, an embattled mass transit project.

"We must act NOW," the subject line read.

But behind the scenes, the mayor and his aides were putting together a plan to temper his well-known, deeply divisive vision of the Amp rather than continuing to charge ahead full-bore. Nodding to his increasingly vocal and politically agile opposition, Dean unveiled that plan Tuesday, announcing that the city will work to design the $174 million, east-west bus rapid transit line so it won't need dedicated lanes on two key stretches.

Dean also said he plans to put together a 20-member citizen advisory committee of Amp supporters and critics to help decide the best design along the 7.1-mile route, which he said remains the best place to start building a more robust mass transit system.

"My hope is that we can come together to find a real solution to a real problem," the mayor said at a news conference. "We should be about finding the best option that will benefit the most people, and this solution will be based on sound engineering and facts."

Related story:Read more about the Amp project

The mayor said he expects new designs to be ready this fall. He's set to leave office in less than 18 months and would like to see the project moving forward before then, officials said.

The Tennessee Senate has passed legislation that would block the Amp by making it illegal to drop off or pick up passengers in the center lanes of state roads. The matter is now in the hands of the House of Representatives, which is looking at a different bill but could adopt the Senate's language.

While Dean aides said the mayor's move, which he had been considering for weeks, wasn't designed to head off House action, House Speaker Beth Harwell applauded it.

"I think Mayor Dean did the right thing," the Nashville Republican said. "It certainly speaks volumes about what a good leader he is. We'll come up with a better outcome in the end."

Harwell said she would continue to support the existing House legislation, which would require state approval of any bus rapid transit project. The House Finance Committee passed it on a voice vote Tuesday, and a full House vote could happen within a week.

Harwell declined to comment on the Senate version.

"We'll see what ultimately happens," she said. "I'd like to see first who's asked to serve on the advisory committee."

Beaman not impressed

Dean said automobile dealer Lee Beaman, a key figure in the Amp opposition, has been offered a place on the committee. Beaman said he would be happy to serve, but he said Dean's compromise — which could keep dedicated lanes off of Broadway in front of Beaman Toyota, just west of the downtown I-40 overpass — didn't do much for him.

"I don't understand why, if they acknowledge that the dedicated lanes are bad in some areas, why they don't realize that they're bad all the way around," he said. "Wherever lanes are reduced, you're going to have a bottleneck."

Beaman said he told Dean at a small dinner party recently that he would "jump on board" if the mayor would drop dedicated lanes from the entire route.

But reversing course completely could cost Nashville the $75 million the Federal Transit Administration has recommended pumping into the project over the next few years.

Dean said the FTA has told Metro officials that soliciting more community input is a common move around the country during transit debates. Metro Councilman Ronnie Steine, who lives near the proposed Amp route, said Dean was trying to bring some "civility" into the discussion.

"I don't know how anybody on either side could see it as anything but positive," Steine said.

Reach Michael Cass at 615-259-8838 and on Twitter @tnmetro.