Residents of Raunds will soon be familiar with robots roaming their streets following DPD's launch of autonomous robot deliveries in the town. DPD, the UK's leading courier company, has decided to begin using robots to deliver customer parcels in the area after a successful trial of the scheme in Milton Keynes.
Raunds is one of the 10 towns within the UK to be selected for this scheme. Raunds is home to Warth Park, where DPD have a depot and where the robots will begin their delivery journey.
The robots will only be delivering to customers that live within a mile of Warth Park. Customers that are due to receive a robot delivery will first have to confirm that they are at home to accept the parcel.
They will then be able to track the robot's progress from the DPD depot to their home. When the robot arrives at its destination, the customer will use a specific code to open one of the three secure compartments on the robot to access their parcel.
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Once the customer closes the compartment, the robot will either travel back to the Warth Park depot, or to the next home delivery. The robots run on a 12-hour battery life, so will be travelling around Raunds throughout the day.
North Northamptonshire Council has worked closely with DPD to introduce delivery robots in the county, and is pleased that this scheme has been launched. Cllr Graham Lawman, the Executive Member for Highways, Travel and Assets for North Northamptonshire Council said of the scheme: "We are delighted that DPD is introducing delivery robots in Raunds.
"The council is committed to the environment and supporting clean and green alternatives to traditional forms of transport to reduce emissions. It is great to be able to help bring this innovation to North Northamptonshire."
Tim Jones, the Director of Marketing, Communications and Sustainability for the DPDGroup UK added: "The trial in Milton Keynes has been a huge success for us. The robots have exceeded our expectations, and the feedback has been fantastic.
"We can see people's reactions when they meet them, and it is overwhelmingly positive." The DPD robots were first introduced in Milton Keynes in July 2022, and their success has meant they are now expanding across the country in an effort to increase sustainability.
Some Raunds residents have already spotted the robots in the street, and there will definitely be more of them to come.