Riderless mower cutting lawns and turning heads

Emily Scarlett anchoring/reporting
RAVENNA, Mich. - It’s been hot and muggy this week, making it tough to get out and cut the grass. One lawn crew in Ravenna is getting a bit of break thanks to a new piece of equipment taking some of the load off.
That new equipment is cutting grass to perfection-with a mower that doesn’t need a driver.
The autonomous Wright mower uses Greenzie GPS and autonomous technology.
Mike Radford is the owner of Northern Outdoor Maintenance. He said, “You can’t get straighter lines than a GPS.”
Once a Ravenna Public Schools student, Radford now handles all the outside maintenance for the district.
“Me and most of the guys all grew up here in Ravenna and went to school here,” said Radford.
He came across this riderless mower at a recent vendor show.
He said, “We thought it was a no brainer. We hired a lot of people that just didn’t work out. They do it for a couple weeks and it’s not for them. So, I guess the best way to go is to get a mower that don’t need a driver.”
The mower takes about two hours off the time it normally takes for a roughly 15-acre job, according to Radford. He also says it puts on somewhat of a show.
“We had cars right on the road just slowing right down to almost a stop. I don’t think many people have seen this.”
Michael Moody is a sales rep with Woodland Commercial Equipment. He told 13 ON YOUR SIDE, “Some people are skeptical. They’re a little leery and want to stay away from it but most of the time people are more interested.”
There are safety measures in place, just in case.
“If I stood in front of it, it would look at me and then it would go around. Kind of make an egg shape and go around me and continue back on its path. When it’s done, it will give you a report of what it missed,” said Moody.
This riderless mower can also operate with a rider.
It is more expensive than your average riding mower.
“The typical one’s going to run, I believe, around $17,000 and this one is, with all said and done, tax and the GPS, you’re in the $50,000 range,” said Radford.
A steal for this small business owner because whether there’s rain, extreme heat, or a shortage of workers, the job still gets done.
“A lot of people do say that machines are kind of taking over the world and it’s going to be like that if we can’t find people to work. So, of course, we’re going to probably be looking at investing in more of these,” said Radford.
The riderless mowers operate similarly to robotic vacuums or driverless cars.
Right now, they’re mostly made for commercial use, but those we spoke with say it’s only a matter of time before they're available for residential use.
By the way, Radford says his company is always hiring for multiple positions.
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