Delivery robot crashes in Estonian capital

In Tallinn, up to nine passengers on a city bus could have been injured after the driver abruptly braked while trying to avoid colliding with a delivery robot. The device, according to the transport company Tallinn Transport (TLT), passed an intersection at a prohibitive traffic light signal, and after the collision left. This was reported by the Estonian radio station with reference to the carrier.

The incident occurred on Monday at one of the intersections of the Estonian capital. The bus driver applied emergency braking to prevent a direct collision with the robot. As a result, the passengers standing in the cabin lost their balance and fell.

TLT collected eyewitness accounts and published a video of the incident on social networks. According to the company, the number of victims can reach nine people.

After the collision, the robot was thrown across the roadway, but then it continued to move and left the scene of the accident. TLT board member Andrey Novikov commented to Estonian radio that the device had actually left the scene.

The robot maker, Starship Technologies, said it had contacted police and launched an internal investigation to establish the circumstances of the incident. Company spokesman Pepe Aaviksoo expressed regret over the accident and stressed that safety remains the manufacturer's top priority.

Starship robots are designed for autonomous delivery of groceries, ready meals and parcels. They are capable of carrying cargoes weighing up to 15 kilograms over a distance of up to five kilometers. In Estonia, devices move on sidewalks without direct human control, using multiple cameras to monitor the environment.

The previous known case of a delivery robot colliding with a bus occurred in April 2020.

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