In London, group running network offers a Tube alternative for the commute home

With an eye toward improving fitness and alleviating overcrowding on the city's public transportation system, Home Run organizes guided group runs at the end of the work day along popular bus and Tube routes.

Today’s consumers are already well-acquainted with the financial and environmental benefits of using public transportation rather than a car to get to and from work, but a new venture in London is now proposing yet another alternative. With an eye toward improving fitness and alleviating overcrowding on the city’s public transportation system, Home Run organizes guided group runs at the end of the work day along popular bus and Tube routes. Launched in March, Home Run aims to offer a free and safe guided running network that gives users a way to get extra exercise on the way home from work while also staying off crowded public transportation. Participants begin by registering with the company’s website and booking a place on the route they take between work and home. Home Run provides participants with a free t-shirt and backpack on their first run. Then, at the appointed time at the end of the work day, they meet their team leader in their running gear at the start point. Company-driven cargo bikes are on hand to carry participants’ bags, allowing runners to proceed clutter-free and at a comfortable pace toward their home station, where they then collect their bag and make their way home. The video below illustrates the concept in action: Home Run currently focuses on London, which anticipates increased crowding this year as a result of hosting the 2012 Summer Olympics, but plans are already underway to expand further throughout the capital and to other cities throughout the country. Time to set up something similar in your congested neck of the woods? Spotted by: Kim Armstrong