Plucky initiative helps londoners to get fit, get home, support this year’s sporting legacy. . .
... and avoid overloaded public transport for free
London created the world’s first and most famous underground network in 1863 and in the run-up to this year’s widely predicted Olympic transport problems, London is now the birth-place of yet another world first – HOME RUN.
HOME RUN, which launches w/c 12th March 2012, was conceived to help people cope with increasing travel disruption, tackle growing health and fitness issues and allow commuters to enjoy their commute home. It provides a FREE, safe, guided running network, which allows Londoners to run home following Tube routes ... and they even carry your bag for you!
Routes are currently London based in response to this year’s added demands, but plans are already underway to expand further throughout the capital and to other cities throughout the country.
As Games and Transport Chiefs, Government Ministers, the Mayor of London and the media warn daily of the pressures facing London’s crowded transport system, HOME RUN provides a truly viable way to get Londoners off public transport in 2012 and beyond, which is why Run England and Run Britain are official partners.
You simply register at www.homerunlondon.com, book a place on your selected route and meet your team-leader in your running gear at the start point. You drop your bag in the custom-built cargo bikes and then run, clutter-free and at a comfortable pace to your home station where you collect your bag and make your way home (or go down the pub with the friends you’ve made).
Designed to be fun, safe, healthy and free, HOME RUN helps people to get fit and get home in a year when trips on London’s Tube, trains and buses are expected to hit an all-time high of 3.4 billion a year and nearly double to 6.5 million a day on the busiest days in August.
Initial trial routes proved so popular that membership is already in the thousands, with fans from New York to Italy tweeting about the initiative. With Brits being told that they’re either unfit, overweight or (in the run up to the Olympics) they need to work at home, go abroad or go to the pub, HOME RUN provides a timely solution.
“Our initial trial runs showed that people really wanted to get fit while they got home, to socialise and be safe doing it. Saving time and fitting it all in their daily routine is a big draw” said Home Run’s founder Diccon Loy.
HOME RUN plans to introduce new routes throughout the year, taking the service to every corner of London. Members can vote for additional routes online at homerunlondon.com and plans are also under discussion to roll-out the idea in other cities throughout the UK.
Example routes include:
Bank → Clapham Junction
Bank → Waterloo
Waterloo → Clapham Junction
Canary Wharf → London Bridge
Canary Wharf → Stratford
Charing CRoss → Clapham Common
Canary Wharf → Waterloo
Canary Wharf → West Ham
In Sport England’s most recent ‘Active People Survey’, London came fourth from bottom in a regional league table showing the percentage of the population achieving Government targets on sports participation. In a year when the Government aims to make people more active, underlining NHS London’s statement “London has a unique opportunity to be the first city in the world to demonstrate a lasting physical activity health legacy from the commitment to host the Olympiad,” HOME RUN offers people a great alternative to their daily commute.
“We wanted the service to be accessible, unintimidating and easy to join” said Loy. “We are open to everyone from seasoned marathoners to people who’ve never run in their lives and often members find themselves running further than ever before because they’ve been chatting and the time just flies!”
Key features of the service include:
• Safe • Sociable • Healthy / get fit • Carry your bag • Save money • Save time • Free / easy to join • Lose weight
HOME RUN: Be part of the solution, not part of the problem!
