The video that shows running to work in London can be quicker than cycling

Race: Max Joseph in his cycling gear
Tom Marshall20 October 2015

Cyclists often claim to be the quickest commuters in London - but a surprising new video suggests running may be the fastest option of all.

Designer Max Joseph filmed himself travelling from his home in Hackney, east London, to his office in Soho by bike and foot on consecutive days - to find out once and for all which is quicker.

He then put the results together to make a video in which he races himself - in the syle of previous viral clips of people racing Tube trains - and amazingly jogging came out on top.

In an introductory voiceover, the motion graphics designer and animator says: “I can’t stand the Tube in rush hour and buses are mega slow, so usually I’ll either cycle to work, or I’ll run.

“To find out which gets me into Soho quicker, I thought I’d do each on consecutive days, and film it.”

The east Londoner took about 26 minutes to complete the 5.5 kilometre (3.4 mile) journey both times, but despite gaining an early lead while cycling, he ended up being a full 14 seconds slower on the bike.

He travelled slightly different routes to avoid the canal towpath when cycling and admits his bike is a “cheap” single-speed. But he mainly blames the slower cycle on London’s congested roads and his refusal to jump lights.

“I don’t cut red lights,” he says.

“If I did, it wouldn’t even be a contest.”

The video of the stunt has now been viewed more than 12,000 time after he posted it on YouTube.

It was lavished with praise in the comments, though some focused on the unmentioned drawbacks to running.

One user called Perotnik wrote: “For me the question is more: how sweaty you are? If one has a shower at the office, running indeed seems like a nice alternative, otherwise not so much.”

ClockwiseCycling said: “But how out of breath are you running it vs cycling it?"

Meanwhile, Ken O'Rourke added: “Great video. Amazing how an indirect route and traffic congestion can slow down your cycle. My cycle to work is a lot more straightforward, is pretty much bang on 5km door to door, and usually takes me about 10 to 14 minutes.”

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in