Injured Waffle House Victim Makes Best Request Of Mayor

NASHVILLE, TN -- The old saw that there's more that unites us than divides us is often proved true in the wake of a tragedy.

In honoring hero James Shaw Jr., in raising money for the victims, in keeping a lookout for suspect Travis Reinking, Nashvillians have come together in numerous ways since the murder of four people inside a Murfreesboro Pike Waffle House Sunday.

One of the women still recovering in the hospital after Sunday morning's tragedy spoke for all Nashvillians during a meeting with the mayor this week.

According to Metro Councilman Jeremy Elrod, Metro Mayor David Briley told the crowd at a Tuesday town hall meeting that the woman had a specific - and universal - request: get rid of the potholes on Interstate 440.

Fortunately, she'll get her wish. The Tennessee Department of Transportation announced earlier this month that crews will patch and repave the notoriously bumpy ring road ahead of its major rehabilitation, which begins this summer.

Nashville's loop road has been the butt of jokes and a source of frustration for years, with its standstill traffic and its asphalt that's better suited for lunar rovers than Land Rovers. This winter's pothole-ocalypse made things even worse, opening up sedan-swelling craters. TDOT said the pre-patching is necessary because the road would not be able to withstand the extra stress caused by the major construction project unless it was fixed beforehand.

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