Boca Raton CRA approves plan to pilot an autonomous shuttle in Meisner Park

The Boca Raton Community Redevelopment Agency on Monday moved forward with a limited autonomous shuttle pilot in Meisner Park, directing staff to amend the existing Circuit contract to include a three‑month trial and to return with details on operations and approvals.

The pilot, as described by Public Works and Engineering Director Zach Beere, would deploy a Level 4, eight‑seat autonomous shuttle on a roughly 0.5‑mile loop in Meisner Park with four to six stops and a safety attendant in the vehicle under current federal practice. Beere said the initial trial is intended to collect operational data so staff can seek broader approvals and scale to Phase 2 and Phase 3 routes on city streets.

"We, again, highlighted the element of starting small," Beere said, explaining the hybrid model would "complement our existing on‑demand service." He also provided the commission with the latest Boca Connect data, saying March 2025 showed 2,030 trips and 3,131 passengers with an average wait time of 8 minutes, 55 seconds.

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