Beep Inc. Deploys Shuttle to Lake Nona Area Hospital to Expand Autonomous Vehicle Service
Patients, visitors, employees, and community members have a new and innovative way to connect to the Nemours Children’s Hospital campus in Lake Nona without having to use their personal vehicle and worry about parking. Beep, an Orlando-based autonomous mobility services and technology provider, launched an additional autonomous shuttle route connecting to the hospital. The new passenger service expands the Move Nona autonomous vehicle mobility network in Lake Nona, a 17-square-mile, neo-urban community by Tavistock Development Company.
“Expanding our driverless shuttle routes in Lake Nona to another area of the community is part of our commitment and mission to provide the public a safer, convenient transportation alternative. By using the most advanced autonomous shuttle platforms, we can connect more people to the important services and locations they seek while positively impacting the environment by utilizing our driverless, electric vehicles,” said Joe Moye, Beep CEO.
The driverless shuttle route connects the Lake Nona Town Center and the Nemours Children’s Hospital campus which also has a Ronald McDonald House. Connection to the Lake Nona Town Center provides visiting families with open-air space for walking, dining, and entertainment minutes from the hospital. Shuttle passengers can also connect to additional shuttle routes from the Town Center hub, giving them access to additional recreational, hotel, retail and dining options as well as the Orlando VA Medical Center.
“Having the Beep available can save time and reduce stress for our patient families and for our dedicated associates at Nemours Children’s Hospital. The autonomous shuttles will provide added connectivity to all that the Lake Nona community has to offer, and this is especially helpful for families of patients who are getting treatment in the hospital for extended periods of time,” said Randall Hartley, Chief Operating Officer at NCH, one of the early tenants of Lake Nona.
The more than 1-mile route is the fifth route launched and managed by Beep in concert with Lake Nona’s Move Nona alternative mobility service, the largest and longest single-site autonomous vehicle fleet in the United States. Since launching the first route in Lake Nona in September 2019, the 100-percent electric vehicles have safely transported more than 21,000 passengers over roughly 17,000 miles across the mobility network.