Transport and driving

Carsharing and ridesharing in Luxembourg

Here, we’ll look at some of the market leaders of the Grand Duchy and chalk up their pros and cons.

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In our modern age of traffic jams, parking problems, and unpredictable fuel prices, many are looking for an appropriate travel-hack or commuter solution. This is when carsharing in Luxembourg and ridesharing can help.

These two methods of alternative travel aim to reduce the overall number of Luxembourg cars on the road. It is a neat solution that will, at the same time, decrease general traffic congestion and limit the carbon wheel-print. A number of companies, websites, and apps are dedicated to either supplying or facilitating these services.

Carsharing or ridesharing: which is which?

Carsharing

A carsharing service is much like the car rental service you’ll find at the airport, with one notable difference: its convenience. The cars are available for collection at many locations throughout the country, ensuring there’s always one within reach.Also, once you’ve registered with the particular Luxembourg carsharing company, you’ll be able to make a booking instantaneously via the app and even collect the Luxembourg car without a key. Usually, you can then use the car for as little as an hour, or for up to three days, before returning it. It is the convenience of having a car without the hassle of maintaining a parking space, taking out auto insurance, arranging technical inspections, changing winter tires, etc.

Ridesharing

Ridesharing (commonly referred to as ‘carpooling’) is the practice whereby disparate people, who share a common destination, choose to make the trip together in one car and share the costs.In the past, this was done predominantly by work colleagues or people who met through notice boards and forums. This limitation has now been removed by dedicated companies who go to great lengths to match up users, destinations and routes to attain an optimum economy.

Carsharing in Luxembourg

Two Luxembourg carsharing companies have cornered the market for now. Both Carloh and Flex are CFL-supported Luxembourg carsharing services. Together, they maintain a fleet of small-, medium- and commercial vehicles available for easy collection at more than 60 pick-up locations throughout Luxembourg, including all major city centers and public transport hubs.

Prices are dynamically calculated, taking into account

the type of monthly subscription (if any);
the sort of vehicle preferred;
duration of use;
distance traveled.

Users do not pay for fuel (or charge, in the case of an electric model), auto insurance, technical inspections, maintenance services, cleaning or any of the other necessities associated with owning a car.

FLEX Carsharing

Flex Carsharing website

One of the most popular carsharing service providers in Luxembourg.

The carsharing service’s fleet is composed of major brands and provides city-run-abouts, more serious sedans and vans. At present, these include the Mini Electric, the BMW118i, the Audi A3 Sportback, the Audi A1, the Seat Leon ST, the Skoda Enyaq, and the Fiat Talento.

Drivers (Flex carsharing members) can reserve a car using the FLEX mobile app and access it using their smartphone. The application is available from Google Play and App Store. Register your personal details, and upload a picture of your valid driver’s license. A one-time registration fee of 15 euros may apply. Once the account has been approved, the driver can book and collect the Luxembourg Flex car directly.

In addition to its monthly subscription options, Flex also offers a ‘Basic’ or pay-per-use package. So, if one needs a car to drive the five kilometers to the airport and back, it may be as little as 3.95€ for the hour, plus 0.60€ per kilometer, for a total of 9.95€. It’s all about finding the right package.

To find out the terms and see a map of the stations, visit the website FLEX Carsharing.

Ubeeqo by Europcar Carsharing

LinkedIn Europcar

This is a familiar logo to those who spend any time at all in airports. Europcar is an international car rental company, that provides the foreign and Luxembourgish carsharing sector with vehicles in a similar concept to its peers.

There is a great variety of vehicles to choose from — small city cars, electric vehicles, or vans. Besides usual cars, you can also try high-end cars, like Tesla, Audi, and Jaguar. Depending on a particular model, prices can be as low as 80 euros per day, or 200 euros per day.

Drivers (Ubeeqo members) can reserve a car online or through the Ubeeqo mobile app and access the car with their Ubeeqo card. Simply download the carsharing mobile application from theGoogle Play Storeor from theApp Store. Locate your nearest available Luxembourg car directly in the app and make a reservation. Open the car with your smartphone and find the keys in the glove compartment.

The cars are available for as little as 2 euros an hour or 29 euros a day. The company charges a one-time registration fee of 9.90 euros and offers different rates depending on the type of car and time of rental. Rentals are paid by the hour, and insurance and fuel are included in the price.

Carloh Carsharing

Carloh Website

Carloh is the other CFL-supported, Luxembourg-based carsharing company, helping the Grand Duchy to realize its National Mobility Plan. It operates in a similar manner to Flex, though it is slightly more restrictive.

In addition to registration, it may also require new users to attend an orientation session and collect their customer cards, which will act as their vehicle access keys. Carloh also does not allow to take the Luxembourg car beyond the borders of the Grand Duchy’s immediate neighbors.

Carloh Carsharing in Luxembourg offers vehicles of M, Se, and S classes: Peugeot, Ford, Opel, and Renault. A driver can rent a car for a time period from 1 hour to 3 days maximum.

Drivers (Carloh members) can use an app, that works on Android, as well as iOS. The app allows you to rent a car immediately and just drive, but keep in mind, that to use it, you will need to enter your customer number and PIN. The one-time fee for registration will cost 29,74 euros.

Carloh does not offer pay-per-use packages, requiring a monthly subscription instead. But this may be as little as 4.96 euros per month. Besides the monthly subscription fee, the driver pays for time and kilometers — it depends on a tariff and distance and can be as little as 0,45 euros for a kilometer and 2,78 per hour.

Carpooling services in Luxembourg

Though the majority of carpooling services operating in Luxembourg are initially based in either France or Germany, the geographic overlap has proven quite fruitful for Luxembourg carpoolers and, especially, for cross-border workers.

The concept of carpooling is simple:

Enter your required trip (or commute) details on the carpooling app and watch it find a suitable driver, car, and fellow passengers, that are already going your way.
Use the app to communicate with your driver and fellow passengers for ease of organization.
Pay online and catch a car at the meeting point.

The service is extremely flexible and will, in most cases, accommodate whatever wild, weird, or wilfully random trip you desire. Here are a few companies that can provide carpooling in Luxembourg.

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Klaxit

Klaxit is a French company that is notable for rewarding carpool drivers with gift cards. It also offers peace of mind by providing a ‘return home guarantee’ in the unlikely event your driver cancels.

Interesting: On March 15, 2023, Klaxit announced the acquisition of the company by BlaBlaCar. Created in 2012 as a startup in France, over the years the company has gained the trust of users, and most important, of the government and local authorities. Now they will collaborate in the users' favor.

The registration and usage of the application are free for users. Some trips can be practically free because municipalities and communities (or companies) pay for them. When none of this applies, the cost of carpooling can be as little as 1,5 euros up to 15 km, with every kilometer more than that being 10 cents more.

You can download the mobile application and look for cross-border workers that drive to Luxembourg daily for work and join them. Available in Google Play and App Store.

Blablacar

The biggest and most famous company, that has been around for years. They provide a wide range of services, from daily trips in BlaBlaCar Daily to a variety of buses in BlaBlaCar Bus and long-distance trips from one country in Europe to another.

Based on the idea of carpooling, and shared costs of traveling for drivers and passengers, Blablacar has grown to be a massive company. Among millions of users and drivers, anyone can find an option for travel.

Always make sure to check reviews and verified drivers before going for a ride. Safety is still important.

You can find a trip from France to Luxembourg for as little as a few euros. Drivers offer prices themselves, so it always depends on them. Meanwhile, bus prices are controlled by the companies. The payment is online, so no need to worry. There can be few people in the car, you will see it in the app, if the places are taken or not, and who will accompany you.

You can download the mobile application from Google Play and App Store.

Carpooling services in France and Germany

Mobicoop

This carpooling company went to great lengths to use open software to develop its app, ensuring not only a free app but also an advertisement-free one. It places a slight emphasis on regular or planned leisure trips.The Mobicoop was created in 2009 and is supported by local French municipalities and French Tech East. Its shared owned company, which means that stakeholders can choose the General Assembly for the project. Their aim is to change the model of shared mobility.You can download the mobile application from Google Play and App Store.

Pendlerportal

The lone German website in the mix. Pendlerportal carpooling service focuses on finding willing carpool drivers. If you have a daily commute or even a regular weekend route, this is the place to register in order to find passengers going your way. This will help defray the driver's personal costs and is better for the environment.Currently, they create 300,000 shared car rides per month, mostly in the territory of Germany. But it's a great way to try to find commuters for cross-border work trips in the Grand Duchy from, for example, Saarbrucken, a nearby city.You can download the mobile application for passengers from Google Play and App Store.