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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Walking vs driving kids to school

458 replies

OpportunityKnocks · 12/02/2020 13:27

I've seen a few rants about traffic on local Facebook pages.

Every single time there is someone who says 'well, if the parents walked their children the half mile to school then we wouldn't have this problem' with an inference that parents are lazy.

Well, actually, people usually drive because it is quicker, just like they drive to work because it's quicker than walking or public transport.

Parents, like the rest of the population have stuff to do. It wound me up because a lot of comments were targeted at parents that don't work. I'm currently on mat leave and drive DS to/from preschool. I have other reasons why I drive him aside from time, but that's irrelevant. Why is my time any less valuable than someone who has to go to work? That half a mile is a 40 minute round trip walking vs a 20 minute round trip driving.

So AIBU to call these people out on blaming parents for traffic?

OP posts:
bloodywhitecat · 12/02/2020 14:17

I drive the mile to playgroup because we live on a rural B road with no footpath and no lighting. If two lorries meet one has to pull as far the the left as possible to allow the other to pass at a snail's pace, the road is full of blind bends and hidden dips which means walking really isn't an option. I would love to cycle but with two kids it isn't safe, it used to give me the collywobbles doing it without the added distraction of two child seats on the bike.

Northernmum12 · 12/02/2020 14:18

We live rurally and DS school is 7 miles away so I drive, I then drive DD to nursery 6 miles away and drive to work another 6 miles. The amount of people I know who live around the corner from the school and still drive there everyday is ridiculous. I would love to be able to walk to school and back. The few minutes from the car to the school door are bliss, it’s one of my favourite times of the day

Beautiful3 · 12/02/2020 14:19

I live 20 minutes away from school. During the summer & autumn we walk. But right now because of the wet and muddy route, I'm driving. I never park near school though, I park a few streets away and we walk the rest.

TulipCat · 12/02/2020 14:21

We all need to cut down on driving short distances, but I guess the school run is an easy and obvious target. I work in central London and the number of courier vans and motorbikes carrying light things that people can't be arsed to walk round the corner with is astounding. Not to mention all the online delivery vans for people who find that more convenient than going to the shops. Everyone is going to have to make sacrifices for the sake of the environment, not just school parents.

Original poster
OpportunityKnocks · 12/02/2020 14:22

This really isn't difficult to imagine 20 minutes round trip

So say 2 minutes to get in the car (baby in tow), 3 minutes to chat to the staff and put clothes on and get back in the car
7minutes drive each way. Including x2 timed traffic lights that. 20 minutes round trip.

OP posts:
Aroundtheworldin80moves · 12/02/2020 14:22

We are on our fifth nursery/preschool/school combo now

  1. nursery about half a mile away. Never occured tome to drive. Took ages to get home some days. Even did it the day DD2 was born.
  2. nursery/preschool 2 miles away. Generally drove but occasionally walked to pick up. DD1 (2-3yo) would walk most of the one way trip .. but she was nicknamed the mountain goat but she was impossible to tire.
  3. School/preschool about a mile. Walked or cycled.
  4. School over 3 miles, but school bus stop about a quarter of a mile. Walked them to bus stop
  5. School 2 miles. We drive and park a few minutes walk away. Sometimes leave car at supermarket 3/4 mile away if I need some shopping after school

I hate being reliant on the car for school. The traffic stresses me out. Walking you have more control over time. Yesterday it took me 15 minutes to get into town, it usually takes 4. Then we hit the traffic for various schools. Got th to school at 9.05- 30 minutes after we left home. 3 times the normal drive time.

AJPTaylor · 12/02/2020 14:23

With dds when they were little, breakfast club started a 8.00 And not a second sooner. I had to be at work at 8.30 In the nearest town. I had to drive them and drop on the way because the 10 min walk back was critical time I did not have.

LolaSmiles · 12/02/2020 14:24

From many places it would be quicker to walk than drive once you count parking especially allowing time to get "good" parking...
This is so true.
There's multiple primary schools within a reasonable (under 20mins walk) from my house. Almost everyone is local and attends the closet school.

At 2:30/3pm last week I walked to the shop near the school and the road was full of cars.

It's all well and good talking about driving is quicker, time is important etc but that doesn't match with dozens of parents spending half their afternoon sitting on the side of the road. I'd bet money most of them could set off home later than they're parked up, walk, and still be on time for pick up.

Vulpine · 12/02/2020 14:26

So you wont give up another 20 mins of your time for cleaner air, less traffic and healthier population? My time is not more valuable than yours but my right to clean air is more important than your right to save 20 mins.

GoldenOmber · 12/02/2020 14:27

I'd bet money most of them could set off home later than they're parked up, walk, and still be on time for pick up.

That is absolutely the case at my local school. I can believe some of the parents/kids have invisible disabilities that make walking impractical but it's hard to believe that's ALL of them.

thatmustbenigelwiththebrie · 12/02/2020 14:27

I think you should walk if you can and make time for it. It's better for the planet, the city environment and your health. For instance, I walk to work (25 mins), tonight I have a hair appointment which is a 45 minute walk from work, then I'm having dinner at a friend's which is an hour's walk from the hair appointment. (I will prob get a cab home as it'll be late!) but that's about 6 miles walking just there built into the day.

I do have a car but to be honest it probably wouldn't be much quicker in rush hour traffic and I'd still have to park.

isittheholidaysyet · 12/02/2020 14:27

3 miles to school.
Walking it takes 1hr 20, if we have a march on. (Yes I know it shouldn't but I have short legs, and have never been a fast walker)
And then I would need to walk home.

Drive? There, between 10 and 15 mins depending on traffic.
Probably 8 mins on way back and at pick up time.

Buses, earliest one would get them to school half an hour late. After school we would have to wait 2 hours for the bus.

We'll be driving.

Stressedout10 · 12/02/2020 14:27

Sorry but am 🤣 at 40 min to walk 1/2 a mile. The average walking speed of humans is 4-6 miles an hour that's atleast 1 mile in 15 minutes even if you double that time its still not 40 mins.
Yabvu to drive
I walk my ds to school and have done since he was in nursery its 2 miles (the short way) or 3.5 miles the way we walk (safer than the other way) why do we have to go the long way because of the twatish way other parents park and drive! I've been hit by 3 cars (thankfully they were only going slowly) twice on the zebra crossing on school grounds (1 of which was the f***t who was reversing over it whilst on the phone when I was halfway across) and once on the green man crossing outside of the school because the mum was running late and the red light didn't apply to her!

Oh and it takes about 40minutes for us to walk the 3.5 miles

Strokethefurrywall · 12/02/2020 14:28

I'd love to be able to walk the nearly 3 miles to school/work but don't because it's 82oF year round here, there are very few sidewalks and everyone drives like a dickhead.

I'm hoping the government introduce a school bus system for the private schools so that once I wave the kids off I can run to the office and shower here.

Sometimes, despite our best efforts and preference, it just might not be the most convenient solution. SAHMs have shit to do as well.

Sirzy · 12/02/2020 14:30

And of course even if you do need to walk you don’t need to be parked right but the school gate and you certainly don’t need to be parked on the pavement like so many do.

Park slightly away from the school and walk in

Stressedout10 · 12/02/2020 14:30

Sorry a bit of a rant but this really annoys me

mindutopia · 12/02/2020 14:30

Well, school is about 3 miles for us, so we have to drive. It would probably take us 2-3 hours across fields to walk there!

But I absolutely would walk if I could, if I lived in the village and it was a short walk, it would be much less stressful. Dd has a friend who lives in the village and her mum still drives to do the school run. You can literally see her house from where we park. It would take 5 minutes at most to walk it.

Bibidy · 12/02/2020 14:30

So say 2 minutes to get in the car (baby in tow), 3 minutes to chat to the staff and put clothes on and get back in the car
7minutes drive each way. Including x2 timed traffic lights that. 20 minutes round trip.

OMG OP are you for real?? I don't think you can include 'getting into the car' and chatting as part of your 20 minute round trip. Bloody hell.

olivehater · 12/02/2020 14:31

I walk when I have time and when it isn’t lashing it down. I have three children 6 and under so getting them suited up and in the pram/on scooters is a serious task. On the days I work I don’t have time as I have a 40 min commute and have to drop at breakfast club as soon as it opens and I pick up after 5 in the dark.
The days I am off I try my best but sometime just get everyone ready in time. Often have an appointment/ somewhere to go straight after. But yes it is nice to walk when possible. We are all just doing our best.

Bubblysqueak · 12/02/2020 14:33

I live a 10 min walk to school and would love to walk but unfortunately I have to drop ds2 at the walkable school followed by ds1 at his school which is a 10min drive away and only have 15 min to do this so there is no way I can walk and the same on the way home.
I know other parents who drive because they're on there way to work etc.

KateTheShrew · 12/02/2020 14:34

My time is not more valuable than yours but my right to clean air is more important than your right to save 20 mins.

This. It's less than a mile. You should walk.

Strugglingtoquit · 12/02/2020 14:36

But so many parents arrive early to get the best parking spots, which means it’s no quicker because they then sit in the car outside the school for half an hour!

JacquesHammer · 12/02/2020 14:37

Meh - I fondly imagined we would walk to school every day. Then we didn't get any of our local schools on application and were given one 25 minutes drive away.

We ended up going to a private that was closer but still needed a drive.

Vulpine · 12/02/2020 14:38

Its not just walking or driving - there are other modes of transport, public and cycling

LolaSmiles · 12/02/2020 14:38

Park slightly away from the school and walk in
What an unreasonable suggestion. Don't you know those minutes are precious / they all have invisible disabilities / their children would take 82 hours to walk 100m / crossing a residential road is like playing chicken in the M1.

I like the 'must drive due to traffic and crossing roads' arguments though. The irony of being a driver who is partially responsible for school traffic is lost on some people.