The City of Hoboken is partnering with Coco Robotics and Avride for a 12-month Delivery Robot Pilot Program, officials announced on Friday afternoon.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
The pilot, approved by the Hoboken City Council, will analyze how low-speed, electric delivery robots (also known as Personal Delivery Devices or “PDDs”) can support local businesses and residents while helping reduce vehicle trips, congestion, and double parking.
“This carefully structured pilot gives Hoboken an opportunity to support our local businesses and responsibly test a different approach to local deliveries while prioritizing pedestrian safety, accessibility, sustainability, and accountability,” Mayor Emily Jabbour said in a statement.
“I look forward to hearing residents and the business community’s feedback as we work to utilize all the information we gather to determine whether this technology can be a positive addition to our city.”
The limited pilot, anticipated to launch on September 3rd, will start with 20 robots – 10 from Coco and 10 from Avride – and may only increase with the City’s approval.
They will operate in designated areas, beginning with a small zone within the First Ward before expanding to other areas of the city.
“This is what good government looks like: working together, putting safety first, and thinking ahead,” expressed 1st Ward Councilman Paul Presinzano.
“We are putting in responsible guardrails before the delivery robot pilot launches, with a channel for resident feedback built in from day one. I am pleased Mayor Jabbour and I collaborated to ensure we took a proactive approach to this new technology in our city.”
The robots will initially operate seven days a week on a limited schedule with local personnel responsible for deployment, maintenance, charging, and field response.
The pilot will allow the City to evaluate whether low-speed, electric robotic devices can provide an additional option for local deliveries while improving the safety and efficiency of food delivery operations in Hoboken.
Further, the program will support local jobs with Coco and Avride in robot operations, maintenance, charging, and field response, while providing the City with data on deliveries, miles traveled, emissions avoided, pedestrian access, as well as community feedback.
The delivery robots are designed to operate at pedestrian speeds, with a maximum speed of 6 mph and an average operating speed of approximately 2 mph.
The robots are designed to yield to pedestrians and other sidewalk users at all times and are designed to slow down, stop, or reroute when necessary. Operations will be limited and subject to no-go zones, including parks and other locations.
Additinally, Coco and Avride will park the robots in areas without heavy pedestrian traffic and move them off-street overnight.
Mile Square City tesidents will be able to access robotic food delivery through the same apps they already use to order from local restaurants and businesses.
When placing an order through DoorDash, Uber Eats, or Grubhub/ Wonder, customers may be able to select Coco or Avride as a delivery option if the business is participating in the program.
If available for the order and delivery location, the customer can select robotic delivery at checkout, track the order through the app, and receive instructions when the robot arrives for pickup.
Both businesses and customers will also have the ability to decline food deliveries by robot.