City of Covington makes partnership with drone company official

The City of Covington has formalized a public-private partnership with the drone company Aeronyde.

According to a release from the city, they are working together on a "Smart Cities" initiative which will directly benefit agencies that include the Department of Public Works, Covington Police and Development Services.

The plan is designed to improve service delivery and decision-making for government purposes related to managing assets for infrastructure along Route 220. Drone flights in the area will also relay public safety information for more efficient means of transportation in the future.

Information gathered from this program is expected to be used in building the City's budget for projects along 220 and future VDOT funding requests.

According to the release, the public is reminded Aeronyde is licensed by the FAA and other agencies to perform this work, along with the City receiving prior approval to access Route 220.

Flights are set to begin in late January 2020.

WDBJ7 reported in October that the Governor’s Office had announced Aeronyde Corporation planned to invest $350,000 in the City of Covington to create a new drone command center. You can read the original story

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