A Nashville lawmaker wants to give the metro government the ability to regulate party buses, pedal taverns and other so-called transportainment vehicles. But not all lawmakers are on board.
Rep. Bob Freeman, D-Nashville, wants local government to be able to control problematic transportainment vehicles. He says the loud music, binge drinking and raunchy dancing make people around them feel unwelcome.
“We’ve got families that are deciding not to take their kids downtown because of the lewd behavior that’s going on in a lot of these buses,” Freeman said.
But Rep. Chris Todd, R-Madison, says the bill goes too far.
“We usually, as a General Assembly, put our subdivisions … in some sort of a box, give them some parameters,” Todd said. “This gives them pretty much an open-ended regulation even to the effect of again putting some out of business.”
The bill advanced. However, some tour companies want to make sure the regulations won’t hurt their bottom line.
Metro Council passed a ban on open containers of beer and alcohol on open-air party vehicles last year. Most found a way around the rule by adding plexiglass to enclose their party wagons.
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