Drones are quickly becoming an integral part of our lives. Drone technology, having made unparalleled advancements in the military, surveillance, real estate, agriculture and deliveries among other applications, are starting to become mainstream. Visions of the science-fiction cities will soon be a reality. Picture a skyline of buildings with a fleet of flying drones weaving in and out delivering products, monitoring the sky and traffic, and even transporting people!

Our lifestyles have dramatically changed over the past few years. The streets are now filled with an array of vans delivering food from supermarkets and restaurants, packages from Amazon and parcels from other online shops. Not to mention Uber and taxi services shuttling people all over town. It is becoming difficult for cities to adapt to the increased traffic. Not only is traffic an issue, there are increases in fees such as fuel costs and paying employees to make these deliveries and drones might be the solution that companies are looking for. Not only are drones cheaper to operate, but they promise to be more efficient with faster delivery times.

Last year, the largest online marketplace, Amazon, launched a drone delivery service (trial version) in Cambridge. In Dubai, passenger drones are in their final testing phase. More and more companies are entering new industries using drones.

In a realistic future, convenience comes with a price. Drone delivery might make us less interested in shopping in retail stores or supermarkets. Supermarkets will worry about Amazon’s takeover of the retail market and potential for instant drone deliveries. Chances are that drones will cut down delivery costs and become cheap enough to have your bread, bottle of wine or milk shipped to you fast and conveniently without ever having to get in your car and drive down to the local store. Drone deliveries will be as easy and ordering online or from your phone and walking outside of your house to receive your package delivered by a drone.

Are our cities prepared for drone deliveries when it comes to the hubs that will store these goods as well as accommodating locations where people could claim their drone deliveries? Cities are much more complex than rural neighborhoods that have big backyards that make drone deliveries simple. There are many companies working on solutions for this hoping to gain a big portion of the drone delivery and service industry.

And how about people? Passenger drones will be dropping you on the 30th floor of your office building using a flying personal drone. The high tech revolution will be fueled by all kinds of dedicated drones.  The drone technology, which is set to by-pass the traditional infrastructure, will have a great impact on the physical view of cities in years to come. This is only the beginning. A transformative future is coming and drones are going to lead the way.

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