Automation of individual package deliveries can remove exactly that problem.
Your phone pings you and drone says "We agreed 3pm. That's 5 minutes from now. Still good? (Yes/No). Yes. (4 mins 45 seconds later) drone says: "I'm waiting for you outside. Can you come out to meet me?"
Alternatively, invert the waiting process. Amazon agrees to a 24-hour period starting tomorrow during which I can demand a 15-minute delivery by pressing a button. For very high-volume items this period could be indefinite.
It remains to be seen if this is economically feasible and if we can tolerate hundreds or thousand of these things buzzing around. But you won't be waiting for the man all day.
Your phone pings you and drone says "We agreed 3pm. That's 5 minutes from now. Still good? (Yes/No). Yes. (4 mins 45 seconds later) drone says: "I'm waiting for you outside. Can you come out to meet me?"
Alternatively, invert the waiting process. Amazon agrees to a 24-hour period starting tomorrow during which I can demand a 15-minute delivery by pressing a button. For very high-volume items this period could be indefinite.
It remains to be seen if this is economically feasible and if we can tolerate hundreds or thousand of these things buzzing around. But you won't be waiting for the man all day.