As the cost of personal vehicle ownership continues to rise and people worldwide celebrate the convenience of rideshare services like Uber and Lyft, a small company based out of Atlanta, Georgia, plans to open shop in Texas, offering customers armed drivers to get them to their destination.
While the most popular rideshare applications like Uber and Lyft have transcended their status as nouns, having become verbs in our daily vernacular, lesser-known options are available. One of these companies, BlackWolf, currently available in a few cities across America, plans to expand into the great state of Texas, specifically Dallas, Houston and Austin. Normally this wouldn’t be news, but there’s a catch. The company actively seeks to hire drivers with backgrounds in law enforcement or the military who are permitted to carry firearms and able to pass necessary background checks.
BlackWolf allows riders to select whether they prefer armed or unarmed drivers, giving passengers the option based on their comfort level. Founder of BlackWolf, with 19 years of experience in the private security industry, Kerry KingBrown spoke regarding his reasoning behind offering armed drivers to customers.
“The idea came from one of my clients that I was transporting; she was caught in human trafficking for about three years…she gave me the idea and said you need to create something, some type of transportation for people like me and my daughter,” said KingBrown.
Having launched in 2023, the BlackWolf application has more than 300,000 downloads, a small number as it remains a relatively new company. While the rideshare service is growing and expanding, customers can expect significantly fewer drivers available compared to Uber and Lyft, with just 45 to 65 drivers spread between its current territories of Atlanta, GA, Phoenix, AZ, Orlando, and Miami, FL.
“I wanted to create something for people like myself, for people like my past clients, but I wanted to make it more about them… I want them to feel comfortable. I want them to have peace of mind,” said KingBrown.
BlackWolf rides are expected to cost 10 to 15 percent more than the average Uber or Lyft, similar to Uber Black rates. KingBrown, however, says he does not see the rideshare giants as direct competition due to their drivers being unauthorized to carry firearms. For those who do not carry firearms daily or otherwise can not for one reason or another, it may be an added layer of protection or comfort knowing they have a trained and permitted driver getting them from A to B. Time will tell how widely this may spread but, in the meantime, freedom-minded individuals in these cities who wish to give their business to companies whose ideas more closely coincide with their own will have the option to vote with their wallets.
