2.2 mile walk to primary school - doable?

[cheeseismydownfall]

We will be moving soon and will be just over 2 miles away from the kids (10, 8 and 6) primary school. We are totally car dependent where we are now and all of our fitness has suffered for it, so I'd really like to get back to walking to school. Do you think that distance is realistic? We would have a car as a backup in case of terrible weather etc. Anyone else do this with primary age DCs?

DofE says a reasonable travelling time to school for under 11s is up to 45mins, whatever method of travel.
So many people say 'cycle'. What if you can't afford to get bikes for all the family, or have never learnt to cycle, or there is heavy traffic on the route?

If my lazy 2 year old regularly walks 3 Miles I think your 6,8 and 10 year olds will be fine!

If we lived that close to school we would walk.

If my lazy 2 year old regularly walks 3 Miles

Sorry but I struggle to believe that a 2 year old regularly walks 3 miles. I'm not saying you're lying...I think you're massively underestimating what 3 miles is...have you actually checked the distance on Google maps...3 miles is actually really far...it must take hours with a two year old.

No I’m not massively underestimating thanks. I’m not an idiot.

There is a difference between a 3 mile stroll 'look at the conkers' and a 3 mile 'we have to keep going and it's chucking it down' day in day out.

When you say regularly, you mean your 2yo walks 3 miles miles twice a day, 5 times a week?! Suuure...

The average adult walks at 3 mph. So 2.2 miles is 35-45 minutes at adult walking pace. Potentially an hour or more at child pace (let alone a 2yo ). What with the OP needing to walk home again in between, that's not far off 4 hours of walking a day. Who in hell would advocate that any family devote that amount of time to the school run?! Total insanity.

The kids I look after go to a school that's 1 mile from home. They walk or bike there and back everyday, that means that the three year old does at least 4 miles a day - there and back twice a day plus walking or biking to toddler group/library/music group as well.
If they are used to it and have good, weather proof clothes it's not too far.

I’m not saying to do it everyday, but people are posting like it absolutely impossible for kids to walk that far. 2.2 miles is not far at all.

Of course it's technically doable but assuming OP walks home and then walks back to pick up that's about what 3 hours a day? I don't have time for that!

We live 1.3 miles from school and we do occasionally walk it on nice days but when the car broke down and we HAD to walk it was very difficult. It's all very busy main roads so we could not have a conversation of any sort due to the traffic noise, I walked 28 miles that week just on school runs and it took 11 hours! My fitness app was very happy with me......My boss was not.

NotUmbongo not a single person here has said that it's impossible for kids to walk 2.2 miles!!! Clearly almost any child can walk that far occasionally - but since this is a thread specifically about walking to school, the pertinent question is whether they can do it twice a day, five days a week, in good enough time to get to school for 8.45am. It's neither here nor there to do it as a one off - surely that's obvious?!

The whole point doesn’t matter if op had a car though does it?
But it’s not implausible. There a woman I drive past every morning walking her kids to school and she lives miles away and it’s very hilly. But she has no other choice and her youngest has done it since he started walking. You just adjust to it and do it if you have to.

Of course it's doable but that's a lot of walking for you if you're going there and back everyday.

Also it wouldn't be great in the cold, wind, pissing down rain or when your kids come out of school with creations and bags and instruments and goodness knows what else.

I know you have the back up of the car but if you're already halfway there and the heavens open or whatever you're going to be stuck out in awful weather for a good hour or more.

It would be something I reserved for really nice weather only!

Well, she's asking whether it's realistic to do the walk every day. It isn't. I know a lady who used to do a 4-hour walk to school, twice a day, back in the 1930s, without an adult, from 6 years old. You can do lots of things if you have to, it doesn't make them a good idea.

+How far is the actual walking distance and is there a safe pavement the entire way ?

+Do you have the time available, without stress of e.g. having to get to work on time ?

+Are you all healthy without any relevant disabilities ?

If all the above, then very doable:
2.5 miles is the distance my mum had to take me to kindergarten every day

This was back in 1959-1960, before ordinary people like us had cars, so it was quite usual then.
She used to relate how I'd skip beside her the whole damn way and that is also when she taught me all my times tables by rote

She also found time to carry groceries from a dozen little shops and cook everything from scratch - it was before supermarkets -
and run a home without most modern gadgets, with only coal fires, old fashioned wash tub & mangle etc

We were both fine with all the physical exercise

You wouldn't need a gym !

I'd bike it, if possible. Otherwise it will take ages.

We just gave away a perfectly good bike on Freecycle, bikes don't have to be super-expensive.

I’d bike it or drive and park up a mile away and walk that part. That way still getting regular exercise but cutting time in half either way.