A government decree introducing a new experimental legal regime (EPR) to regulate the movement of delivery robots has come into force in 34 Russian regions. The pilot program will last three years, during which the total number of these machines will increase to 12,000. Preparations for further changes to traffic regulations continue.
Image source: yandex.ru/company
So far, the use of delivery robots is limited – about 1,000 robots are operated in the Moscow region, Leningrad region and Tatarstan, and all belong to Yandex. However, there are no federal regulations for them. In May 2025, Yandex proposed to introduce these machines into the legal field and create EPR. The EPR plan was finalized with the participation of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the Interior Ministry, the Ministry of Transport and the Federal Security Service; on September 29, a document signed by the head of government was published and has come into effect.
Generally speaking, delivery robots should not travel faster than 25 km/h on bicycle lanes. In the absence of infrastructure, the rover can drive onto sidewalks and pavements, but in this case the speed limit is 10 km/h; when crossing the road, the speed must be reduced to 6 km/h. If the robot moves along a sidewalk and interferes with pedestrians, it will reduce its speed to a minimum or come to a complete stop. The delivery robot itself must be equipped with a lidar with a scanning range of 30 m, cameras, lighting, digital, and the ability to reproduce audio signals. The amount of insurance per unit is 500,000 rubles.
“Wanderers are becoming official participants in this movement, and now they are given rights and obligations, responsibilities and even insurance. Unified rules across regions will allow us to expand services and make robots a familiar part of urban life for millions of Russians.””, Marat Mavlyutov, Head of Yandex Robotic Delivery Service, said about the project.
“Importantly, the experiments covered different regions and scenarios – from megacities to residential areas, and each operating environment has its own characteristics. In the future, if the results are successful, it will not only be possible to expand the scale of the service, but also lay the foundation for improving overall supervision, including traffic rules and delivery robot operation requirements.””, added Deputy Minister of Economy Maxim Kolesnikov.
In addition to Yandex, EPR players include Dronshab LLC and SberLogistics LLC – who may also launch their own delivery robots.
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