Robots may soon replace delivery drivers in Washington, D.C.
This past month, D.C. Councilmember Mary Cheh sent a robot created by European company Starship Technologies to file legislation through the municipal offices. Her legislation asks for the robots to be given permission to operate on D.C.’s sidewalks.
If approved, the District will be the first U.S. city to test out Starship Technologies’ delivery robots, according to Governing. The technology will also cut costs for retailers by allowing the robots to work within a mile or two of their base.
Governing described how the technology works by reporting:
Customers can choose when they want the package delivered and then track the robot's progress on their phone. When the package arrives, customers simply open the locked compartment with a special code.
There are no reports yet on what exactly the robots will deliver. They will be able to operate autonomously once enough information has been gathered to build 3D maps, collected by the nine cameras built into the 40-pound robots.