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Original poster

Would getting an Uber to school be maddness

55 replies

Undecidedandtorn · 15/07/2021 10:56

I have recently split with my husband and am looking for somewhere new to live. I don't drive (I have tried to learn but can't seem to get the hang of it and can't really afford a car either) so want to stay in the local area for schools etc (we are likely to do 50/50 with the kids). My youngest is 7 so has a few years of primary school still to go. There are some cheaper nicer properties that would be too far to walk and no bus routes that work but an uber would be about £5 each way which, once I take holidays and only have to do it half of school term time feels doable.

I live in London and never had a problem booking one but not sure if there are other alternatives or pitfalls I should consider. Any thoughts or ideas would be gratefully received.

OP posts:
GreyhoundG1rl · 15/07/2021 11:43

1.5 miles! Of course they'll be capable of walking that, I thought it would be much further from your op.

BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz · 15/07/2021 11:46

1.5miles is about 20-30mins walk for a kid right?

PumpkinKlNG · 15/07/2021 11:47

I thought it was further as well, our school is a mile away. Remember he will only be doing it twice a day, my kids do moan sometimes but I remind them it’s only twice a day and I do it four times 😏 I wouldn’t get an Uber for that I think people are so use to having cars and driving their kids everywhere and never doing the school run on foot that maybe these things seem far but it really isn’t. We’ve walked since mine have been reception age.

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Bluntness100 · 15/07/2021 11:48

Why don’t you get a contract with a local taxi firm, it would probably work out cheaper.

BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz · 15/07/2021 11:51

Probably best to budget for full school term time. Assuming that your ex will do 50/50 school runs is a great starting point but sometimes, some men are dicks and dont pull their weight after a split

Midnight0 · 15/07/2021 11:53

We have the same bus issue but unless it's pissing, we walk. 30min either way, he will get used to it. I don't drive so we walk everywhere, DD6 after a year of walking to school has improved from 40min walk to 25-30min walk

AnotherEmma · 15/07/2021 12:22

It's such a shame that safe cycling routes aren't prioritised in this country. It could be the perfect solution for journeys that are too far to walk and too short to drive. But of course on busy roads with no separate cycle lanes, it's very off-putting.

BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz · 15/07/2021 12:50

@AnotherEmma

It's such a shame that safe cycling routes aren't prioritised in this country. It could be the perfect solution for journeys that are too far to walk and too short to drive. But of course on busy roads with no separate cycle lanes, it's very off-putting.
But then the school would need to have a facility to safely store all bikes of students who cycle to school.

And the OPs workplace

missnevermind · 15/07/2021 13:10

Plan on walking it. But have the peace of mind that if its raining, he is having a very slow day or if you really don't want to you can just call an uber, no problem no fuss.
It was a game changer for me when I realised that I could just call a cab when I couldn't cope with the walk.

Steelesauce · 15/07/2021 13:16

At 1.5 miles, I would probably walk. Use an uber on rainy days. Or 1 way if you're running late/need to be somewhere after school. But it's upto you entirely! I wouldnt judge you regardless of how you do it.

AnotherEmma · 15/07/2021 13:22

"But then the school would need to have a facility to safely store all bikes of students who cycle to school.

And the OPs workplace"

My schools had bike racks when I was a child years and years ago! It's not hard.

As for parents storing bikes at work, not sure why that's more an issue than parking a car? If companies provide car parking they can also provide cycle parking surely?

In an ideal world, where cycling is prioritised, there would be a plan for bike parking/storage as well as separate cycle lanes.

PumpkinKlNG · 15/07/2021 13:29

My kids school asks children not to ride scooters or bikes down to school and definitely wouldn’t let you store them there, they are not even allowed in the play ground

GreyhoundG1rl · 15/07/2021 13:29

But then the school would need to have a facility to safely store all bikes of students who cycle to school.
😂
Schools have had bikesheds forever. Literally forever. It's not some new, onerous imposition.

PumpkinKlNG · 15/07/2021 13:30

Not all schools...

GreyhoundG1rl · 15/07/2021 13:32

@PumpkinKlNG

My kids school asks children not to ride scooters or bikes down to school and definitely wouldn’t let you store them there, they are not even allowed in the play ground
Oh, ok. Well, that's definitely a move backwards.
BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz · 15/07/2021 13:32

@GreyhoundG1rl

But then the school would need to have a facility to safely store all bikes of students who cycle to school. 😂 Schools have had bikesheds forever. Literally forever. It's not some new, onerous imposition.
None of the ones my kids attend do. Mine didnt when I went to school.
GreyhoundG1rl · 15/07/2021 13:36

Maybe it's because I've always lived in big cities? (In several countries, also). I genuinely assumed it was the norm, sorry.

AnotherEmma · 15/07/2021 13:41

My secondary school wasn't in a big city, just a medium sized town, and there were bike shelters.

I think all schools should provide them, but I suppose there must be good reasons they don't - space and funding I guess.

PumpkinKlNG · 15/07/2021 13:42

I’m in London, but at our school they don’t really like kids riding bikes to school and no place to store it

pigglepot · 15/07/2021 13:44

I agree with the others- plan to walk/scooter most of the time and hop in an Uber or cab the rest of the time. 1.5 miles is definitely doable and you get some steps in and chatting time on the way. Save your £5 and buy a coffee as you walk instead!

Eardrumy · 15/07/2021 13:50

1.5 miles is doable. I walk pushing my baby in the buggy, with my 3 years old on a scooter and my 5 years on his bike to go to school which is 2 miles away. We do set off early and stop for plenty of breaks though.

HollowTalk · 15/07/2021 13:59

@BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz

1.5miles is about 20-30mins walk for a kid right?
Oh come on! A seven-year-old doesn't walk a seven minute mile.
BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz · 15/07/2021 14:02

Oh come on! A seven-year-old doesn't walk a seven minute mile

Wouldnt a seven minute mile be 10.5 mins walk?

Average walking speed is about 4mph. Down to 3mph for a kid. So about half an hour.

NuffSaidSam · 15/07/2021 14:08

I think it's fine to get an Uber if you can afford it and it makes your morning less stressful.

It's 30 min walk, which is perfectly doable. But it's also fine to not want to walk everyday. If an Uber works for you, do it.

Or do a bit of both (Uber there/walk home) or walk in good weather/Uber in bad weather.

Original poster
Undecidedandtorn · 15/07/2021 14:16

Thank you all for taking the time to responded - its really helpful. There is so much to think about when your so used to there being two of you and you live minutes walk from school and now you have to flip what you do on so many things.

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