Autonomous Shuttles Delivering Pizza to Florida Healthcare Workers
Park Pizza & Brewing in Lake Nona, Florida is using an autonomous shuttle to deliver pizza to healthcare workers who are on the front lines in the battle against COVID-19. The first recipient was the Orlando VA Medical Center who received 20 pizzas on Wednesday.
The program is being overseen by Beep, which runs the area’s autonomous shuttle program. The mobility company recently helped the Mayo Clinic’s Florida location become the first place in America to use autonomous vehicles to transport medical supplies and COVID-19 tests.
“It’s an honor to provide for those who are on the frontlines of this pandemic,” said Joe Moye, CEO of Beep. “Mobilizing our team and partnerships in any way we can to support our communities is necessary in this time of need.”
Beep Self-Driving Shuttles Help Cut Down on Person to Person Interaction
To limit contact with the delivery, each pizza box was sealed, put onto a cart, loaded into the shuttle by Park Pizza & Brewing restaurant employees and then secured by the onboard shuttle attendant. Personnel at the medical center were then able to roll the cart into the hospital once taken off the shuttle upon arrival. Utilizing the autonomous shuttle ensures safe delivery of the food without having to rely on other services and allows workers to remain on campus.
“There are hundreds of health care workers in our backyard in Lake Nona Medical City that are on the frontlines of this crisis each and every day,” said Jennifer Thompson, Park Pizza & Brewing’s area director in a news release.
The autonomous shuttle program in Lake Nona normally operates on fixed routes but that has been temporarily suspended due to the COVID-19 lockdown. Beep and Lake Nona officials are searching for more ways to use autonomous vehicles and artificial intelligence to benefit the community.
Check out our articles on Dubai developing an autonomous Sky Pod network and Hong Kong using robots to make deliveries during the COVID-19 quarantine.