The Twitter account for StopAMP used to feature the red and white logo used on billboards and road signs. The user picture is now a sign that says, “stop and think.” The name associated with the account as also changed, from “StopAMP” to “Go Nashville!”
A group opposed to the $175 million bus rapid transit line known as the Amp is trying to promote a more positive message. The StopAMP organization is trying to make the point that they welcome expanding mass transit in Nashville, but not via a dedicated bus lane running down one of the city’s busiest thoroughfares.
StopAMP was on hand at a meeting in January, where maps of the route were laid out for public comment. Image: Claire Tattersfield
Green Signs And Smiles Vs. Red Signs And Scowls
West Meade resident Andy Martin is against the Amp, but he didn’t like what he saw from fellow opponents when he attended a public meeting on the project earlier this year:
“I noticed shiny, happy faces with the Yes Amp people and the wonderful green color [the Amp Yes! coalition uses a green and white color scheme on its signs and t-shirts]. And I noticed scowls and foreboding looks from the StopAMP people. It just seemed very negative! It wasn’t appealing, it wasn’t positive.”
Martin says he convinced StopAMP leaders to let him change the group’s message, at least on Twitter. He says StopAMP isn’t anti-bus or anti-transit. While they say they support “alternatives” to the Amp, they haven’t spelled out specifics beyond expanding Nashville’s existing bus system.
The selective re-branding hasn’t stopped them from being direct about their opposition to the project. The group is holding a public forum in Belle Meade Thursday night. An email for the event says “Save West End, Stop The Amp.”
Here’s the logo as commonly seen in yard signs around the West End corridor in West Nashville:
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