One driver, and that is me
I drove professionally for years before starting out on my own. You get the same person rather than a changing number — someone who after two journeys knows how you like it.
Designated driver
You drink. I drive. In your own car.
Why Monarch Drive
Why you put me behind the wheel
No changing number and no driver you have never met. Your own car is on your drive in the morning, and you knew the price before you got in.
Your own car, your own drive
No taxi that has to bring you back to a car park the next morning, and no car left in town overnight. It is simply at home in the morning.
No night or weekend surcharge
A ride at three in the morning on a Saturday costs the same as the same ride on a Tuesday evening. The hour is precisely why you are calling me.
How it works
From the last glass to your own drive.
You call or message — a day ahead is best, but on the night itself is fine. I need your pick-up address, your destination and a time, nothing more. I come to you by public transport or with a following car, I am there at the agreed time, and if you stay seated a little longer you will not hear a sigh from me. Then I drive you home in your own car and park it on your own drive. No trip to collect it the next day, no parking charges, no fuss.
What it costs
All amounts include 21% VAT. As a first client you get 20% off: a ten-kilometre ride becomes € 68 instead of € 85.
What it costs
Per ride, known in advance
- Call-out fee€ 35
- Per kilometre€ 5
- Minimum per ride€ 75 — no minimum distance
- Waiting time€ 10 per 5 minutes, the first 10 minutes free
- Intermediate stop€ 9 per stop, as many stops as you like
- Night or weekend surchargenone
- Cancellationfree up to 2 hours ahead, after that half
A ten-kilometre ride costs € 85. A twenty-kilometre ride costs € 135. You know the amount before you get in.
Where I come
I drive alone, so I have to get home as well
- Rides starting before 00:00pick-up up to 50 km, drop-off up to 40 km from Nieuwegein
- Rides after 00:00pick-up up to 25 km, drop-off up to 20 km from Nieuwegein
- Beyond thatask me — it often works out, at an adjusted price
In practice: Utrecht, Nieuwegein, IJsselstein, Houten, Vianen, Zeist, Woerden and Culemborg at night, and a good part of the Randstad earlier in the evening. I would rather say no honestly than leave you waiting at three for a driver who is not coming.
Who drives
No student drivers at Monarch Drive.
At Monarch Drive one experienced driver does the driving, and that is me. I drove professionally for years before starting out on my own; no student of twenty or younger gets into your car and there is no stand-in pool you know nothing about. That is deliberate, and it also explains why I am not the cheapest: the Dutch minimum wage rises in steps up to the age of 21, so working with young drivers is structurally cheaper. There is a price tag on that which does not appear on their website — many insurers apply an increased excess of € 150 to € 500 where the driver was under 24, and that sits in the small print of your policy. With me you do not run that risk.
For those who do it often
If you go out regularly, you can build up a balance and draw your rides from it. The more you put in up front, the lower the price per ride — from 5% off, rising to 20%.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. Your own car insurance remains the governing policy regardless of who is at the wheel, provided they hold a valid licence. Do check whether your policy has a driver clause — some insurers exclude drivers under a certain age or apply a higher excess. With me that does not arise.
On the night itself. I am reachable day and night and will take a ride booked at half past eleven in the evening, as long as it falls within my range. If you know in advance, a day ahead is of course easier.
No. With a taxi a strange car pulls up and you pay per kilometre for that vehicle. With me I get into your car. You pay for my time and the distance, and your car is on your drive in the morning.
That is fine, and there is no maximum. An intermediate stop costs € 9. If the goodbye takes a while, waiting time only starts after ten minutes.
No. A ride at three in the morning on a Saturday costs the same as the same ride on a Tuesday evening.
Up to two hours before the agreed time you cancel free of charge. After that I charge half, because by then I am usually already on my way to you.
Sometimes. I have no car of my own, so afterwards I still have to get home — and at night, outside the Randstad, that is difficult. Do ask: if I can arrange it, I will, at a price that includes the journey back. If I cannot, I will say so straight away rather than leave you waiting.
