Running vs. driving the commute
The other day I was running and saw this painted text on the asphalt: "Takk for at du går og sykler!" (Thank you for walking and cycling!). It got me thinking about the common assumption that ditching the car in favor of traveling on foot is better for the environment and thus makes you a better citizen.
Then the question hit me: what is the difference in energy consumption, CO₂ emissions, and cost between "the human engine" and a gasoline car? What if the average Norwegian switched from driving to running the commute?
The following tables compare running a daily commute against driving the same route. Adjust the parameters to see how the results change.
| km | |||
| days | 261 weekdays - public holidays − vacation days | ||
| kg | avg. Norwegian male, 40 yr, 180 cm, BMI ~27 — sources | ||
| NOK /l | NOK 22.87/l, 30 Mar 2026 — source | ||
| l/100 km | sources | ||
| min/km | comfortable commute pace for a recreational runner | ||
| km/h | urban average incl. traffic lights, parking, residential zones |
Annual comparison
| Running | Driving | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Distance | – | – | |
| Energy Gasoline equivalent |
– – |
– – |
Running uses –× less energy |
| CO₂e | – | – | – |
| Time | – | – | – |
| "Fuel" cost | – | – | Running costs –× more |
Energy
| Running | Driving | |
|---|---|---|
| Kilocalories / Fuel | – | – |
| Megajoules | – | – |
| Kilowatt-hours | – | – |
Calculation details
Running energy expenditure follows a near-constant rule of ~1.00 kcal per kg of body weight per km across pace ranges of 4:00–7:00 min/km (typical range 0.9–1.05 kcal/kg/km).–
Annual energy in gasoline equivalent
running expenditure ÷ 34 MJ/l = – litres
CO₂ emissions
| CO₂e per year | Lifecycle boundary | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Running — extra food | – | Farm-to-fork | Norwegian average diet, 2.1 kg CO₂e / 1,000 kcal |
| Driving — gasoline | – | Well-to-wheel | TTW: 2.31 kg CO₂/l + 18% upstream |
Farm-to-fork (running)
- Food emission factor — 2.1 kg CO₂e / 1,000 kcal
- Source: Tromsø study (BMC Public Health, 2025): 4.8 kg CO₂e per person per day at a mean intake of ~2,300 kcal
- Lifecycle boundary follows Poore & Nemecek (2018): farm → transport → processing → retail → consumer
- For comparison, Rose et al. (2023) found 2.23 kg CO₂e/1,000 kcal for a US omnivore diet
- Annual food CO₂e:
–
Well-to-wheel (car)
- Car well-to-wheel factor — 2.31 × 1.18 ≈ 2.73 kg CO₂e/l
- Tank-to-wheel: 2.31 kg CO₂/l of gasoline (EU OBFCM, 2024)
- Well-to-tank upstream: +18% for crude extraction, refining, and transport to pump (Edwards et al., 2018 — JEC Well-to-Wheels v4)
- Annual car CO₂e:
–
Time
| Running | Driving | |
|---|---|---|
| Minutes per day | – | – |
| Hours per year | – | – |
Calculation steps
––
Cost
| Running | Driving | |
|---|---|---|
| Extra food / Gasoline | – | – |
Calculation steps
- Baseline metabolism (BMR) — Mifflin–St Jeor (1990), male, 40 yr, 180 cm:
BMR = 10 × weight + 6.25 × 180 − 5 × 40 + 5 = – kcal/day - Total daily expenditure (TDEE) — PAL 1.40 (light office work):
BMR × 1.40 = – kcal/day - Running surplus — extra kcal on commute days:
– + – = – kcal/day (–% more food) - Cost per kcal — from the SIFO reference budget (2025): NOK 4,780/month, male 31–50:
4,780 ÷ 30 days ÷ TDEE = NOK – per kcal - Annual extra food cost:
running surplus × cost/kcal × working days
Conclusions
Dragging yourself across town requires a fraction of the energy a car needs to do the same. It makes sense when you think about it: hauling just flesh and bones is a fundamentally easier job than moving a ton of metal with you.
On the other hand, producing the fuel that powers the human engine is not so efficient. The environmental gap between running and driving is narrower than the "thank you for walking" crowd would have you believe. As it turns out, extracting energy from a hole in the ground is remarkably more efficient compared to farming it.
Then there's the money. People complain about fuel prices, but fueling the human body is in a league of its own. The food calories needed to commute the same distance cost several times more compared to gas. Your legs run on premium.
Finally, time. Nobody has ever wished for a longer commute. At the default settings, running triples time spent on commuting. Personal transportation exists for a reason.
References
Anthropometry
- Average height in the Nordics [→]
- Average male height in Norway: 179.7 cm
- Overweight and obesity in Norway [→]
- BMI data from Tromsø 7 & HUNT4 (2024): avg. Norwegian male BMI ~27
Energy expenditure
- A new predictive equation for resting energy expenditure in healthy individuals, 1990 [→]
- Mifflin–St Jeor formula used for BMR calculation
Food carbon footprint
- Food choice vs. eating local [→]
- Lifecycle boundary: farm → transport → processing → retail → consumer
- Environmental impact of food consumption in Northern Norway, 2025 [→]
- 4.8 kg CO₂e/person/day at ~2,300 kcal intake → 2.1 kg CO₂e / 1,000 kcal
- Popular diets — carbon footprints and diet quality, 2023 [→]
- 2.23 kg CO₂e/1,000 kcal for a US omnivore diet (for comparison)
Vehicle emissions and fuel consumption
- Real-world CO₂ emissions and fuel consumption of cars and vans (OBFCM) [→]
- Tank-to-wheel: 2.31 kg CO₂/l of gasoline (EU Commission, 2024)
- JEC Well-to-Wheels analysis v4, 2018 [→]
- Well-to-tank upstream: +18% for crude extraction, refining, and transport to pump
Fuel price
- Norway gasoline prices [→]
- NOK 22.87/l on 30 Mar 2026
Food cost
- SIFO Reference Budget [→]
- Male 31–50, food and beverages: NOK 4,780/month (2025)