Five scooter companies have sent a joint proposal to Mayor David Briley on improving scooter operations in Nashville, recommending advocacy for bike lanes, free helmets at community centers and limits on scooter fleets.

The letter, from Lyft, Uber's Jump, Bird, Lime and Gotcha Mobility, comes in response to Briley's threat to seek a ban of electric scooters if the companies fail to address concerns surrounding safety and operations. Briley asked scooter companies to come up with proposals after Nashville resident Brady Gaulke died from a scooter accident. The scooters have come under scrutiny for cluttering sidewalks, impairing pedestrian traffic, causing serious injuries for riders and prompting concern from drivers who fear hitting scooter users.

Briley is reviewing the letter, sent Friday, and will make a decision on scooters soon, according to spokesman Thomas Mulgrew. Briley gave the companies 30 days to come up with proposals on May 23.

To reduce scooter parking issues on sidewalks, the scooter operators propose fleet limits of 1,000 scooters per company during the pilot period that extends through April of next year, limits on operations downtown, greater use and implementation of parking corrals, more reminders to users on parking through apps and requiring one company representative per 100 scooters focused on clearing sidewalks and encouraging good behavior. Instead of allowing operators two hours to address issues, the companies propose a tighter, one-hour window.

To reduce sidewalk riding and improve scooter user behavior, the companies propose greater educational materials through tags or instructions on the scooters that emphasize proper use, offering of periodic safety training classes and exploring speed reduction zones in heavy pedestrian areas.

The scooter companies are also suggesting they work with the Nashville Downtown Partnership to support "monitoring efforts" on sidewalk riding downtown, which according to one company could include reminding users to stay off sidewalks and moving scooters to corrals.

To boost overall safety, the companies recommend free helmets available through apps, as well as at community centers, such as libraries or farmers markets. They also encourage on-street scooter corrals, bike lanes and slower speeds for car drivers through adoption of the city's "Vision Zero Policy."

The companies are also advocating for greater data sharing with the Transportation Licensing Commission that could help with infrastructure planning and transit planning and recommended that operators provide support for more bike lanes. They did not elaborate on what that support and advocacy would involve.

"We're eager to work with Mayor Briley to find solutions to the concerns he and Nashvillians have raised," said Phil Jones, Lime's senior director of government relations. "We believe these measures can result in a safer environment for all street users, while maintaining the benefits scooters provide to the city and its residents."

The proposal by the five companies does not address enforcement issues of existing scooter rules, such as parking restrictions and sidewalk usage in business districts, and makes no mention of penalties to users regarding improper use. Enforcement has been a point of frustration from residents since scooters were rolled out last year, and Metro Police officials have said they have limited resources to focus on scooter violations.

Officials at one scooter operator said the companies anticipate more conversations with city leaders that include the topic of enforcement.

The proposals seek to address critics’ complaints related to a lack of helmet use and a lack of education before scooting. But there is no requirement proposed related to training or helmets, calling on residents or tourists to voluntarily attend a class or seek out a helmet.

Other issues raised by scooter critics include allowing scooters to be used during night hours, which can add to the number of those scooting under the influence of alcohol. The proposals do not address alcohol-related issues or operating hours.

Some operators have said more conversations about scooter policies and specifics of the proposals are underway than are mentioned in the letter. Those include discussions about per trip fees that could be dedicated to bike infrastructure.

Whether the policy proposals are strong enough to sway Briley and Metro Council members that scooters should stick around is unclear. Some members of the Metro Council have said they are not satisfied by the status quo of scooter operations and have emphasized that without council approval, scooters will not be able to operate beyond the pilot period.

Seven scooter companies, also including Spin and Bolt, operate more than 4,000 scooters in Nashville.

Reach Jamie McGee at 615-259-8071 and on Twitter @JamieMcGee_.

Lime rolls out new scooter solutions:Voluntary classes, drinking precautions and parking corral focus