Nashville has 89 permitted entertainment vehicles on its streets. When we pitched the city in April 2026, exactly one of them could carry a wheelchair, and it couldn’t fit every wheelchair.
We’re changing that. This August, Metro’s Transportation Licensing Commission granted Local Bike Taxi a permit to build a wheelchair accessible pedal tavern, and we’re planning to roll it onto Broadway in downtown Nashville in March 2027. Here’s the story of how it started, what we’re building, and why it matters for Music City.
It Started With My Mom
The idea for this pedal tavern didn’t come from a business plan. It came from my older sister’s 50th birthday party plan. My sister, Hope, wanted to have her 50th birthday party on a pedal tavern, but my mom has limited mobility. There was no ramp or steps with a railing to get her on board, and even if we’d managed it, the seats didn’t offer the kind of support she’d need for a two-hour ride.
I’ve spent more than ten years in the pedicab industry, and since we launched Local Bike Taxi in Nashville, I’ve seen the same thing again and again from behind the handlebars: people with disabilities left on the sidewalk while their friends climb aboard, or stranded downtown after a show waiting for a ride. Nashville’s open-air party scene is one of the most fun things about this city. It shouldn’t come with a stairway at the door.
Nashville’s Party Scene Wasn’t Built for Everyone
When we put our pitch together for the city, here’s what Nashville’s party-vehicle landscape looked like:
- 27 pedal bar bikes
- 42 pedicabs
- 53 low-speed vehicles
- 89 entertainment vehicles
Out of all of them, only one could accommodate a wheelchair, and not every wheelchair at that. Meanwhile, 13.7% of Americans have a mobility disability. That’s a lot of people who’ve been told, without anyone saying it out loud, that this part of Nashville isn’t for them.
Put another way: fill a 16-seat party bike, and there’s about a 90% chance at least one person in your group needs a seat that doesn’t pedal.
There’s another piece people often miss: an estimated 20 to 40 percent of people with disabilities are cared for by an elderly parent. If there’s no seat for the caregiver, there’s no ride for the person they care for. Accessibility has to include the people who come along, too.
Built With the Disability Community, Not Just For It
This project wouldn’t be where it is without KJ Garner of Bike Fun, a Nashville 501(c)(3) that teaches people of all ages how to ride bikes. KJ introduced me to Dr. Cynthia George, a.k.a. “Dr. Cyn,” the punk rock musician and disability rights advocate who leads Disabled to the Front. If you or someone you love has always wanted to learn to ride, check out what KJ and her team are doing.
We spent months working with Dr. Cyn and the Disabled to the Front community to figure out what this build actually needed. A lot of our original plans changed because of what they taught us, and the bike is much better for it.
What Makes Our Wheelchair Accessible Pedal Tavern Different
A Curbside Ramp, Not a Rear Lift
Our first plan was a rear-mounted wheelchair lift. Then we learned that standard lifts run 30 inches wide or narrower, which is far too limiting for the range of mobility devices we want to serve. Our accessibility advisors recommended a curbside ramp instead, and it’s better in every way:
- Riders roll off onto the sidewalk, not into traffic. Rear unloading would leave guests in the drop-off lane, forcing them to travel in the car lane just to reach a corner.
- Downtown’s tall curbs work in our favor. A higher curb means a shorter ramp and a gentler slope.
- It fits any type of mobility device, including the oversized chairs that other accessible transport often can’t take.
- It keeps the bike lighter and keeps sightlines clear for everyone on board.
Accessible, Not Isolated
The heart of the design is a 7.5-by-4-foot rear platform with two 36-by-36-inch mobility device positions. Guests roll on from the side, and a rear entry with drop-down stairs and a railing gives everyone else an easy way to board. The platform reconfigures for each booking:
- Two mobility devices side by side, or
- One mobility device plus a companion bench that faces the rider, so a friend or caregiver rides right alongside them instead of up front with their back turned.
Accessibility means being part of the party, not parked near it. One vehicle, every group: the whole crew actually rides together.
The Bench: A Seat for the Guest Who Can’t Pedal for Two Hours
Not every rider who needs accommodation uses a wheelchair. We’ve replaced three pedal stations on one side with a fixed bench for guests recovering from surgery, living with chronic pain, pregnant, or anyone who just can’t sit on a bike seat for two hours. We’re building it from repurposed airplane seats, because they’re designed to be sat in for hours: lightweight, high-backed, padded for the bumps, and with adjustable armrests for trunk control and stability. Guests step on from the rear. Nobody has to climb up.
And yes, the seats will be bright pink, just like our pedicabs.
Approved by the City
On August 18, 2026, we presented our design to Metro’s Transportation Licensing Commission, and they awarded us one permit to build it. The commission made it clear that Nashville doesn’t need more generic pedal taverns, but it does need accessible ones. We’re proud to be one of two companies approved that day to build ADA-accessible pedal taverns, alongside Every Body Rides. Two accessible options on Broadway is a win for everyone, and we’re cheering them on.
As Featured in the Nashville Scene
The Nashville Scene covered the project in its Street View column, “Making Nashville’s Party Vehicles More Accessible,” featuring Dr. Cyn and me, the design, and the bigger push to open up Nashville nightlife to disabled people. Dr. Cyn summed it up better than I ever could: “I’m really fighting for disabled people’s right to live.”
Read the full article in the Nashville Scene →
Why This Matters for Nashville
Nashville is hosting the Special Olympics USA Games in 2034. Imagine visitors arriving to find accessible party transport that doesn’t exist anywhere else in the world. Travelers with disabilities spend an estimated $58 billion a year on U.S. travel. They travel with companions, they plan ahead, and they’re fiercely loyal to the places that treat them well. Nashville has a real chance to lead here, and we’ve already heard from people in other cities asking for accessible party vehicles of their own.
But for us, it comes back to something simpler. Everyone deserves to ride down Broadway with their friends.
Ride Lower Broad With Us in March 2027
Our accessible pedal tavern is designed for disabled riders first, and it’s open to every group. Bachelorette parties, birthdays, family reunions, friends visiting from out of town: if your crew includes someone who’s been left on the curb before, this ride is for you. And if it doesn’t, come anyway. The party’s better when everybody’s on board.
Want to be first in line when bookings open? Email us at hello@nashvillebiketaxi.com and follow @NashvilleBikeTaxi for build updates between now and launch.
A huge thank-you to KJ and Bike Fun, Dr. Cyn, the Disabled to the Front community, our fabrication crew, the Mayor’s Office of Nightlife, and the Transportation Licensing Commission for helping get this project on the road.
— Grace Lewis, Owner, Local Bike Taxi