Leeds delivery robots: New city suburbs revealed for Starship grocery run trial

The Starship service was launched in November for an initial three months, for 20,000 residents in Adel and Tinshill. Leeds City Council agreed to continue the trial after 75 per cent of participants said they felt positive about the robots, which bring supermarket goods.

It has now been revealed a further 12,000 households in Kippax and Swarcliffe will now be able to have their groceries delivered by robots quickly and conveniently.

Orders are placed through the Starship food delivery app, which is available for download on iOS and Android, with residents in Kippax and Swarcliffe able to choose from a range of groceries picked fresh in two local Co-op stores – Co-op Kippax on the High Street and Co-op Swarcliffe Avenue.

With a delivery fee starting from just 99p, customers can order their delivery to arrive in under an hour and watch the robot travel in real-time via an interactive map. They will receive an alert when the robot arrives, and can meet and unlock it through the app.

Councillor Helen Hayden, Leeds City Council’s executive member for sustainable development and infrastructure, said: “Residents and families of Adel and Tinshill have welcomed Starship robots delivering their groceries, with over three-quarters of survey respondents in support of

the introduction of the robots in the area. The expansion to Kippax and Swarcliffe will mean more people in Leeds can benefit from a zero-carbon alternative to grocery deliveries.

She added: “As a council we’re pleased initiatives like this can help towards reducing the emissions of the last-mile delivery journey. It helps us to meet our pledge of becoming a carbon neutral city by 2030 by aiming to reduce short journeys to the shop made by car. Similar to the initial project in Adel and Tinshill, we have created a survey for Kippax and Swarcliffe’s residents and businesses to have their say on the six-month pilot.”

Andrew Curtis, director of european operations at Starship Technologies, said: “The feedback we have received since first launching in Leeds last year has been overwhelmingly positive and we are pleased to be able to extend the benefits the robots have provided to an additional 12,000 homes from today. More and more people are conscious of trying to reduce their carbon footprint and our robots help with this by eliminating the need for short car journeys to

pick up groceries.”

Chris Conway, eCommerce Director, Co-op, said: “Co-op stores are well placed in the heart of local communities to provide quick, easy and convenient home deliveries - whether a full shop or last-minute top-ups. We are committed to exploring new and innovative ways to increase access to our products and services, and delighted to be able to roll-out autonomous robots to provide further online flexibility and choice across Leeds.”

Starship’s robots are powered by renewable electricity, with an average delivery for a robot consuming as little energy as boiling a kettle to make just one cup of tea, making them a more sustainable and affordable way to get groceries delivered direct to your door.

People use the service for its convenience and ease of use to fit shopping around their busy lives, including the 24 per cent of Starship’s existing customers in Leeds who either have or live with someone that has an accessibility need.

The expansion in Leeds continues Starship’s growth across Yorkshire following the launch of the service in Wakefield in May 2023.