St. Pete Officials Consider Drone Taxi Program to Access Brandon-Area Workforce
Following Friday’s successful demonstration of electric air taxis over Tampa Bay, St. Petersburg officials are reportedly exploring a new program that would transport service workers from eastern Hillsborough County into downtown St. Pete.
The proposed program would use electric aircraft to shuttle workers from communities such as Brandon and Riverview to Albert Whitted Airport, where they would be dispatched to local restaurants, bars, coffee shops and hotels.
Development consultant Graham Whitmore says the program could help address the city’s ongoing workforce shortage while eliminating the need for affordable housing and making downtown more walkable.
“We have so many wonderful restaurants, bars and coffee shops downtown, and somebody has to work in them,” Whitmore explained. “But that doesn’t necessarily mean those people need to live here.”
Under the proposal, workers would be flown into St. Petersburg each morning and transported back across Tampa Bay at the conclusion of their shifts.
Officials say the arrangement would allow downtown businesses to maintain a reliable supply of inexpensive labor without adding more vehicles to local roads or requiring service workers to reside in increasingly upscale neighborhoods.
“Look, nobody wants to live next door to these people,” Whitmore said. “But we still want our coffee in the morning and our cocktails on time. That’s just common sense.”
The flights would reportedly be subsidized by the city, with workers eligible for reduced fares provided they return to Albert Whitted Airport immediately after completing their shifts.
Officials emphasized that workers would be expected to leave the downtown area promptly after their shifts, helping to prevent loitering and ensure that the city’s limited public spaces remain available to the people who belong there.
Whitmore called the proposal a win-win for everyone involved.
“They get to come over here, earn a paycheck and enjoy some beautiful views of downtown St. Petersburg,” he said. “And at the end of the day, they go home.”
