Kroger Launches Autonomous Grocery Delivery Service In Arizona

Residents of Scottsdale, Arizona will be able to receive autonomous grocery deliveries from Kroger-owned Fry's Food Stores. The technology required to make this all possible is supplied by Nuro, a self-driving vehicle startup founded by two veterans of Google's self-driving car project. Ars Technica reports: Kroger says that deliveries will have a flat $5.95 delivery fee, and customers can schedule same-day or next-day deliveries. Initially, the deliveries will be made by Nuro's fleet of modified Toyota Priuses with a safety driver behind the wheel. But Kroger expects to start using Nuro's production model -- which doesn't even have space for a driver -- this fall. That vehicle, known as the R1, is significantly smaller and lighter than a conventional passenger car. When we talked to Nuro cofounder Dave Ferguson back in May, he argued that the R1's design had significant safety benefits. A smaller, lighter vehicle would do less damage if it ever ran into something. The vehicle's maximum speed of 25 miles per hour also makes serious injuries less likely. And the fact that the car is dramatically narrower than a traditional car gives it significant safety benefits, Ferguson argued.

25 mph?

[azcoyote]

So how's it going to drive on AZ's many 45 mph streets without jamming up traffic?

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[b0s0z0ku]

Drive on the extreme right or on the sidewalk. Also, this is downtown Scottsdale, are there actually 45 mph streets?

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[Anonymous Coward]

Scottsdale already drives on the extreme right, they avoid the socialist interstate highways.

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[cayenne8]

Yeah...anything down here going 25mph on a public road would get run over pretty quick....

Hell, most people here go faster than 25mph in their driveways!!

:D

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[Green Mountain Bot]

"Downtown" Scottsdale? Scottsdale has a downtown?

Delivery is great for processed foods...

[b0s0z0ku]

not so great for foods that need to be picked and chosen, like fruits/veggies/meats/fish.

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[PopeRatzo]

not so great for foods that need to be picked and chosen, like fruits/veggies/meats/fish.

If you live in Arizona, you're probably not worrying about fresh produce or meat because those are hard to chew with dentures. This service will be fine for delivering cases of Ensure nutrition drinks.

Re:Delivery is great for processed foods...

[JaredOfEuropa]

That was a common fear when our supermarkets started home delivery: you'll get all the crap produce, dairy that's near the end of its sell-by date, and the poorer cuts of meat. Fortunately that fear turned out to be unfounded: the stufff they deliver to your home is just as good as the best you can select yourself from their shelves. Which, in case of meat and produce, isn't very good to begin with. Oh well... it's great for the other household staples such as booze and kitty litter.

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[postbigbang]

And I'm for involving humans, at living wage. The Krogers in my neighborhood tries to hand everyone their own scanner, and hopes they'll check out with their own scanning snafu.

The sadness is the store is now only half of a grocery store, the rest being non-grocery items, booze, greeting cards, motor oil, pharmaceuticals, concessions (Murray's Most Expensive Cheese Kiosks), and so forth.

When a 25mph vehicle comes to my community, sadly, it might end up in a lake along with the rental scooters. This is not

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[grep -v '.*' *]

Sometimes when you need stuff, you need stuff, but it's an edge case.

Damn, you need that many razor-blades? How fast does your beard grow, anyway?

Mine grows like I have low-T but you must have max-T.

Obsolete jobs

[sjbe]

And I'm for involving humans, at living wage.

Are you seriously arguing that we should keep unnecessary and obsolete jobs around? That is economic suicide. Sometimes jobs get replaced by automation. Get over it because it isn't going to change. Seriously, expecting a low margin price sensitive business like a grocery store to not take every opportunity to reduce costs is absurd and naive. It's not a jobs program, it's a for-profit business. Personally I doubt this service will amount to anything more than a publicity stunt but I have no problem

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[Rick Schumann]

Define 'the best you can select yourself from their shelves'? According to whose standards? Are they telepathic, reading my mind at a distance, knowing exactly precisely what produce and meat and whatever else I might select? Would they know if I find all the selection available to be unacceptable and not deliver anything? Will they go to a different store entirely if they, in their telepathicness, know I won't like anything they've got? Honestly I don't know how anyone can use these 'shopper' services exce

When you order online

[rsilvergun]

You tend to get higher quality. It also costs a lot more because they don't apply any of the discounts. Half the benefit is not having to pick through a bunch of crap produce, especially if you're not good at it (e.g. you're color blind). My bro hates shopping and before his income crashed (thanks, outsourcing & H1-Bs) he used to pay for delivery.

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[serviscope_minor]

not so great for foods that need to be picked and chosen, like fruits/veggies/meats/fish.

It's way better than you might expect. I don't often get fresh stuff from supermarket deliveries but I've done s a number of times and always been pleasantly surprised.

At least in the UK anyway where there's very stiff competition for supermarkey delieveries. They have clearly figured that selecting the mankiest crap for the onlie shoppers is not a god way toget repeat custo m.

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[internerdj]

Walmart has a system for its pick-up service: Select fruits and meats are earmarked for the pick-up service so people will keep using the service. You can generally expect a service with a decent startup cost like this one will offer "better" selection than going in to pick it up. Of course, expect the benefits to slide as more people start using the service just like self-checkout was great for a while as people were hesitant to use it, but now you've got to bag your own groceries and wait longer than j

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[cascadingstylesheet]

not so great for foods that need to be picked and chosen, like fruits/veggies/meats/fish.

In practice, I bet it is better than you think.

The in store system is that you pick out your own, so you are essentially responsible if you pick out crap. (Or at least you'd feel that way - what, are you going to say "I want to return this ratty lettuce that I, uh, just picked out myself.")

But if they deliver it to you, then they are responsible for delivering crap to you.

My guess is you would get at least decent and probably pretty good stuff, and the comments from those who have tried grocery delivery

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[Rick Schumann]

Yeah, 100% what you just said. I don't want anyone choosing my groceries for me, 'autonomous car delivery' not withstanding. I can't understand why anyone would. Or are so many people not learning how to cook even basic foods that all they're eating is highly processed, prepackaged 'foods'?

25 MPH max?

[SlaveToTheGrind]

That may limit the damage these things do when they hit something, but I suspect it'll dramatically increase the damage caused by irate drivers that get stuck behind one.

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[b0s0z0ku]

Nah, that's what its cameras would be for. On the other hand, it's Arizona. Drivers with a grudge would bide their time, then take potshots at the thing at their leisure.

25MPH??

[fluffernutter]

Wouldn't a maximum speed of 25MPH qualify for an impeding traffic offense on many routes? Doesn't seem right that a car wouldn't be expected to drive the speed limit. What is the recourse for drivers who are held up behind one of these? Are they as narrow as a bicycle so people can drive around them? I see a lot of road rage coming.

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[Anonymous Coward]

Most streets in Scottsdale are 45mph but two or three lanes. When you turn on to residential neighboard then speed limit will be 25mph. So it can only impede the right lane on the main roads. Traffic in Scottsdale is mostly fine so unless there are hundreds of these it will be fine.

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[Ichijo]

You're not impeding traffic if traffic can change lanes to pass.

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[crtreece]

The signs with the posted speed limits are upper limits, not lower limits. Unless you are on an interstate, there generally isn't a minimum speed.

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[fluffernutter]

Ok but you also have to drive respectfully. If you are holding people up, don't suddenly get surprised when there are road rage incidents.

maximum speed of 25 MPH = limited use

[Joe_Dragon]

maximum speed of 25 MPH = limited use also parking tickets may rack up in the downtown areas where 25 mph max is ok.

I actually like grocery shopping

[93 Escort Wagon]

I took over most of our grocery shopping a few years ago when my wife started having health problems. I’ve found that I actually enjoy it - I find it relaxing, a lot like going for a walk except in a store. It’s a good time to decompress and let my mind chill.

I usually go fairly late in the evening, when the store isn’t busy with shoppers - although I do have to occasionally dodge the restocking crew! If I have to go in the middle of the day, it’s not quite as fun.

cool

[bigdavex]

I'm especially looking forward to self-driving lettuce.

To my door, not to the street.

[hfox]

If I'm getting grocery delivery, I want someone to bring it right up to my door, or preferably into my kitchen. I don't want to have to go out to the street and take the bags out of a car. If I'm going to be lazy, I'm going all-out!

narrower safer

[alleycat0]

> the fact that the car is dramatically narrower than a traditional car gives it significant safety benefits

My experience riding motorcycles is the opposite. THE single most dangerous aspect of riding a motorcycle is the fact that other drivers do not see you because of your narrow profile. They are looking for car-width objects, and fail to see you even though they're looking in your direction. I no longer ride, but would consider a reverse tryke, given its wider front-end profile.