Ann Arbor, Michigan-based May Mobility is preparing to relaunch its automated mobility service in Grand Rapids, Mich. at the end of August. When the low-speed electric shuttles start again, they will be carrying passengers for the first time since pandemic lockdowns started in March 2020. I recently visited May in Grand Rapids to learn more about what has changed.
Like a number of other companies developing automated mobility services, May utilizes the Polaris GEM six-seat electric shuttle. These low-speed electric vehicles aren’t particularly sophisticated and they’ve been largely unchanged since the original GEM eL was introduced in 1998 as a utility truck. The same basic vehicle is now offered by Polaris with two, four or six seats as well as the utility truck. Over the past two decades, these vehicles have become a common site on many business and educational campuses, resorts and closed communities where their quiet operation and 25 mph top speed fit right in.
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