Eyes to the skies - drone trials starting in Milton Keynes to test how the technology could help deliver services
Drone trials are starting in Milton Keynes next week to test how the technology could help to deliver services in the future.
Milton Keynes City Council is leading the trials which will test and demonstrate how drone-based services could work as part of the area’s Smart City infrastructure.
Flights over the centre of Milton Keynes are set to map the area in detail, creating a digital equivalent which can inform highways survey and accident response.
The city council will work alongside Cranfield University’s Drone Innovation Hub and Satellite Applications Catapult Westcott DronePort.
The trial, which is being funded by the UK Government, is set to last 18 months, and will look at how drones could help with services such as smart traffic monitoring, secure parcel deliveries, remote building inspections and emergency responses.
Among the other drone trials currently taking place in the UK are medical drone delivery trials in Scotland, which aim to improve National Health Service logistics in the country, and water quality done trials in Northumberland, which aim to find new ways of obtaining and analysing water quality data.
Speaking about the drone trial, Milton Keynes City Council’s cabinet member for economy, sustainability and innovation Shanika Mahendran said: “This is yet another instrumental trial coming to Milton Keynes to test future technologies.
“The world is moving fast and I’m proud that we’re leading the way in bringing innovative methods to deliver essential services that our residents and businesses rely on.
“If the trials are successful, it will also help us meet our climate action ambitions and create new jobs of the future for local people.”