Self-driving shuttles try virus-killing UV rays
A pair of self-driving car startups are offering a solution to commuters shunning shared transportation in the midst of a pandemic: ultraviolet rays.
Voyage andMayMobility, two autonomous-vehicle companies that charge riders to go on simple, specialized routes, are puttingUV-light emitters in their shuttles to help keep their services running.
The rays are already used in ambulances and can destroy viruses, fungus and bacteria between rides.
The effort echoes Avis BudgetGroup Inc.’smove to market its partnership with Lysolmaker Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc to boost disinfection protocols for its rental cars. Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Inc. also have taken steps to keep riders safe, though both are transporting far fewer people than before COVID-19.
Voyage’s service offers low-speed trips on predictable routes to riders in two massive retirement communities in California and Florida.
The company is putting theUVsystem in its thirdgeneration vehicle— a retrofitted Chrysler Pacifica minivan— that costs half as much as previous models, Chief Executive Officer Oliver Cameron said in an interview. That helps make the roughly $2,000 added cost of theUVsystem more palatable. The new vehicle also can run without a safety driver.
MayMobility resumed its service in downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan, on Aug. 31 after suspending service inMarch.
“Their solutionsmay seem niche, but building a somewhat profitable selfdriving business, even if small, can be an effective strategy to raise funds and transfer their operational know-howto improve their technology at a faster pace,” BloombergNEF analyst Alejandro ZamoranoCadavid said.