Blacklane

Blacklane is a global chauffeur-service brand and booking platform that began in Berlin, Germany, in 2011. Frequent travelers Jens Wohltorf and Frank Steuer founded it with the aim of making professional car service as predictable to book as a flight or hotel. The company describes its offering as a way to make journeys more considered and to give travelers a dependable, professionally driven service across different destinations. Blacklane connects customers with licensed local chauffeurs through its technology. Its website says it works with independent local chauffeur-service providers and does not provide, own, or control the rides those providers offer. Instead, it facilitates bookings. Providers can select rides, typically through an auction, and the platform’s margin comes from selling rides to those providers. Prices are calculated using factors such as vehicle class, distance, and drive time. The listed services include airport transfers, hourly and full-day hire, and city-to-city journeys. Airport transfers include flight tracking, a meet-and-greet option in Arrivals, and one hour of complimentary waiting time. Hourly and full-day bookings can be reserved from two to 24 hours. Blacklane also offers enterprise and agency solutions through a platform for booking, tracking, and accounting for journeys. Customers can book through its app as well as its website. Blacklane says its network reaches more than 500 cities in 60 countries, with local chauffeurs brought together under a shared service standard. Its website emphasizes professionally driven, high-end vehicles, dependable pickups, trained professionals, and service details intended to let passengers work, rest, or travel comfortably. The company also describes sustainability partners as part of its offering. Its international team is described as having more than 400 people, based in hubs across Singapore, Spain, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The supplied information does not identify its owner, parent company, or listed status.

Blacklane began in Berlin, Germany, in 2011. Its founders, frequent travelers Jens Wohltorf and Frank Steuer, set out to make booking professional car service as predictable as booking a flight or hotel. The company developed around a digital platform for arranging chauffeur journeys, rather than a model in which it owns or directly controls the vehicles and rides offered by its local provider network. Blacklane’s operating model connects travelers to independent local chauffeur-service providers through its technology. According to its company description, the providers are licensed, can select the rides that suit them, and typically do so through an auction. Blacklane facilitates the bookings and earns a margin from selling rides to the providers. Pricing takes account of factors including vehicle class, distance, and drive time. The company says that it does not provide, own, or control the rides offered by those providers. The service developed to cover several kinds of journeys: airport transfers, hourly and full-day hire, and city-to-city travel. Airport transfers are described as including flight tracking, a meet-and-greet service in Arrivals, and one hour of complimentary waiting time. Hourly or full-day chauffeur hire can be reserved for periods from two to 24 hours. The company also provides enterprise and agency solutions through a platform for booking, tracking, and accounting for journeys. Blacklane presents its network as a way to provide a consistent experience across destinations by bringing local chauffeurs together under one standard. Its website describes coverage in 60 countries and more than 500 cities. It emphasizes professional drivers, high-end vehicles, reliable pickups, and thoughtful in-car details. The service is available through the company’s website and app. In its current company description, Blacklane reports an international team of more than 400 people working from hubs across Singapore, Spain, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The supplied sources do not provide details of subsequent ownership changes, financing, a parent company, or a public listing, so those corporate-history details are not stated here.

• 2011

  Blacklane founded in Berlin

A global chauffeur-booking platform emphasizing predictable, professionally driven journeys, local provider coverage, high-end vehicles, and a considered passenger experience.

• Airport transfers

  Chauffeur transfers with flight tracking, an Arrivals meet-and-greet option, and one hour of complimentary waiting time.

• Hourly and full-day hire

  A dedicated chauffeur can be reserved for between two and 24 hours.

• City-to-city

  Chauffeur journeys between cities.

• Enterprise and agency solutions

  A platform for companies and agencies to book, track, and account for journeys.

1. 1The Global Chauffeur Service | Blacklaneblacklane.com
2. 2About Blacklane | The Global Chauffeur Serviceblacklane.com