When it comes to dockless electric scooters, more than a few unanswered questions remain for Austin officials to nail down.

For example: What counts as reckless and citable behavior on a scooter? Can scooter companies help invest in infrastructure and safety upgrades? Are scooters actually dangerous as a mode of transportation? How can the city guard against another mobility disruption like it experienced last April, when hundreds of scooters were dropped on the streets out of nowhere?

The two-wheeled vehicles have been a polarizing force since first making an appearance last spring. Austin Mayor Steve Adler said Feb. 28 that half the people he talks to have had a near-death experience with scooters, while the other half cannot imagine life without them.

As the city prepares for the annual influx of hundreds of thousands of people attending South by Southwest Conference & Festivals from March 8-17—the first with electric scooters available throughout the city—answers to these dockless questions will take form toward the end of March and into April, transportation officials said during a City Council mobility committee meeting Feb. 28.

The Austin Transportation Department is scheduled to present City Council with four components of regulation on March 28 centered around use and enforcement, service improvement, innovation and safety.

Since the city cannot set speed limits for sidewalks, transportation officials are working with the Austin Police Department to implement a discretionary “reasonable and prudent” behavior indicator to regulate scooter use in pedestrian-rich environments, as well as create slow-down zones to reduce scooter speeds, violations of which would result in citation. Transportation Director Rob Spillar and Division Manager Jason Redfern said regulation and enforcement would not likely be a one-size-fits-all as infrastructure varies throughout town.

Resources remain an issue as it would take extra personnel to enforce the scooter rules on the street. Council Member Jimmy Flannigan has proposed using the current fee charged to scooter companies—$30 per scooter every six months—to invest in enforcement. Spillar and Redfern said there have also been proposals to invest that money in capital infrastructure improvements, such as dedicated lane creation, to enhance the safe use of the scooters.

Transportation officials are also considering establishing a franchise model for the scooter companies, which they say could give vendors a greater market share and encourage investment into the city.

Last fall, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention launched an epidemiology study into scooter crashes and injuries. Jeff Taylor, senior epidemiologist with Austin Public Health, said Feb. 28 marked the final day of data collection, and the results are scheduled for release later in the spring.

Adler said as the scooter conversation continues to get caught in anecdotes, he is anxious to see the “real data” on the vehicles.