Just Eat UK has recently started a partnership-testing run with cool new four-legged delivery robots. Yet, these robots are meant to conquer difficult urban landscapes, even stairs. The last-mile delivery pilot program, which is running in Milton Keynes & Bristol, seeks to build better last-mile delivery solutions through locally-owned restaurants.
The robots are specially designed to traverse stairs and other obstacles characteristic of city environments. Each robot rolls smoothly around on tiny ball wheels mounted underfoot. On its backside, it has a fancy orange Just Eat box. This new initiative comes after a similar successful pilot project using autonomous delivery vehicles in Switzerland, where almost 1,000 such deliveries occurred.
In Milton Keynes, two independent food businesses are participating in the local trial. Plus, chow down on tasty bites from 12th Street Burgers & Shakes and Moores Fish & Chips! At the same time, Bristol is home to eight independent fry emporiums – with delightful names like Jolly Fryer, Chicken Mews and Bishopston Fish Bar. In working with these institutions, Just Eat UK wants to better understand if robot deliveries can be a helpful solution to cities.
Marko Bjelonic, chief executive of RIVR, the company that created the robots, shared his excitement about the trial. He stated that this partnership represents “an important step in scaling autonomous delivery across European cities.” As e-commerce surges, so does the demand for more efficient delivery systems. These trials will set the stage for future government innovations in this fast-changing food delivery space.
Besides the pilot in the UK, delivery drones are being tested in Ireland. These innovations are just a small slice of the industry’s larger technological shift to improve and hasten food delivery services.
These four-legged robots hold the potential to improve customer service. They want to reduce the burden on multi-stop delivery drivers who have hard-to-navigate experiences in crowded cities. Creative Just Eat UK is a leader in creativity and innovation. It’s largely about providing the most efficient solutions to address the needs of a dynamic and evolving market.