AIBU to wish fewer people drove their kids to school?

[zizza]

It's been lovely commuting to work since the schools have been (almost) closed. I thought it was because of people also not working, but turns out most of the traffic at "normal" commuting times is school run traffic - kind of knew that from past experience of how much better it in is school holidays, but this has been highlighted by the Covid situation. AIBU to think that more children should walk to school?

I have had to explain to my mum in the past why people drove to school if they have a job to go to straight after dropping off so don't have time to walk to school and then back home to get the car, but I'm still mystified by how many secondary school age children get dropped off by car (again, I understand that some people live too far away from their secondary school to walk but what happened to kids walking up to about 30 minutes to get to school with their friends?) I think I'm getting old...

@MrsHuntGeneNotJeremyObviously

You don't know what else they've got going on at home though or whether they've got a limited amount of time to do chores that they need to be child free for. Their time isn't less important than someone else's. There's nothing wrong with wanting to make their children's school day easier by stopping them from getting wet if the weather's bad or helping them get all their stuff to and from school.

Again, I don’t think those of us walking our kids through the traffic fumes, the dangerous driving and the pavement parking that is directly caused by people doing this are morally obliged to plaster on a smile and trill “never mind, though, I’m sure getting home for your hoovering is more important, and God forbid a raindrop fall on your child’s head!”

I don’t care how someone gets their child to school.

I do care when those actions make things dangerous for me getting my child to school.

Turn your engine off and remember the Highway Code still applies at drop off and pick up time should be the minimum expectation!

Yes In theory it would be lovely but the reality is this. After reading the various threads on here and from my personal experience, both myself and children are safer in my car. Sounds strange but the undesirable fact is this. Nobody has ever harassed me or threatened me whilst I’m in my car. Likewise my children are safer there away from the dirty fuckers who prey on them.
Fact my dds have been harrassed whilst on public transport and felt very threatened. They have been stopped and followed whilst walking through so called safe residential areas in broad daylight resulting in the police being called, and victim blamed -surprise.
I have been cat called and had a man follow me in his car trying to talk to me whilst walking home from work.
My dd ended up being pulled into the head teachers office , without my knowledge for not wanting to sit next to the child who was bullying her on the school bus. I went ballistic over this and told them to sort their shit out.
So no I and my children are safer in my car I have the lived experience to prove this.
I cannot see this changing so many children get harrasesed walking to school just read the threads on here.
Society can moan all its wants and trust me Id very much like for people to feel safe to walk- reality walk and you are blamed for any misdomener which happens to you,

@missbridgerton

People should be made to use their local schools.

You don't like the one nearest, move.

I work in Cheltenham and the traffic since last Monday has been absolutely insane. It's so so bad for the environment, and my blood pressure.

And what if your nearest school is 5miles away? Should we still walk?

Not everyone lives in cities.

My DS used to catch the bus. But I now have 2 going to secondary, and the cost of the bus is over £1000 a year. So we share lifts with another family & drive them. It's too far to walk.

Nobody has ever harassed me or threatened me whilst I’m in my car.

you must be living near the only school without any parents road rage then

You pay me what I get at work to be a SAHM and I'll walk the kids to school.
I can't get my child to school and then get to work if I'm having to walk for an hour there and back before and after school. I'd also have to finish work an hour and a half early just to make it to pickup.
Now, I'm a single parent and child's dad lives two hours away, so he can't take her either. It's just not practical

Walking to school is great but not always possible. My DD has additional needs and can’t walk to school by herself or with friends ( and she has no friends to walk with by the way) and the distance to school is too long for her. She’s entitled to taxi but we reserved to use it atm because of pandemic. We tried to move closer to her school but failed, it’s a very popular area with limited amount of houses suitable for her needs.

@zizza
Why can’t you move to be in walking distance to your work? Then cars driving kids to school won’t affect you.

If the ones that are being dropped off by car were also relying upon buses where I live (I have to go through the town centre, as does every kid on a bus to any of the secondary schools in the area - and off the top of my head, there are 18 within a radius of 3 miles of my house, not including the next borough or the other side of town past one of the bus interchanges), I wouldn't be able to physically get on the bus to work, as all the seats would be taken up by students.

As it is, there are loads on them on the 6.20am bus as it goes by my house, where they then stand outside their school gates for well over an hour upon arrival, purely because they know that they aren't likely to get let on after 7am.

Find me a school near my house that isn’t over subscribed and in walking distance!

The two schools I could walk to we couldn’t get a place. Our school is 4 miles away, 1 form entry and no school busses... there are a serious lack of local schools in my area and yes the traffic is horrible near us.

Pre pandemic my commute was 1/1.5 hours, for a drive that would take 25 minutes without traffic

Golden I would agree with you that drivers ought not to be driving dangerously/parking illegally. But this could be caused as much by parents doing the school run before going to work or by people whose reasons for driving you would deem to be 'legitimate' as much as by sahp

Also public transport isn’t an option, we would have to get the ONLY bus into the city (9 miles away and takes about an hour) then the only bus back to the village where school is (hour and a half!)

I am not even in that much of a rural setting we just have crap public transport

I could walk more to be honest. If it was just my 4yo we’d probably walk it every day while still working from home but my youngest makes it much easier to take the car. Reason being:

1. on days they are in nursery and after school club they finish at 6. It has only just started to get lighter around this time and at that time we just want to get everyone home.

2. my youngest is at the point where she moans about being in the buggy but can’t walk the whole way. We have a very safe route to school but it isn’t particularly buggy friendly. The buggyable route is less safe as it involves a stretch on the road. This is fine at weekends but not great during peak traffic times.

3. when we start commuting again, there will be an additional time pressure to get into the office. Neither of us would have the flex to walk there and back before jumping in the car to get to work.

Logically, there’s a finite amount of housing around a school, there will always be those who have no option but to drive their child in whatever their age.

I broadly agree OP. Of course there are many complexities and exceptions, but lots of people are just lazy/far too car dependent - and teaching their children to be so too.

Let’s blame women and children again shall we. How about men and women don’t travel into work for stuff which can be done at home.
I’d really like less traffic on the roads but again it’s not deemed safe to walk looking at posters experience on here.My mum has not used public transport for 12 months now and is unlikely to be using it any time soon.
I won’t be using it anytime soon either, not after my last experience.

I wonder how popular fixed catchments would be in parts of England. Bearing in mind.. people would be in catchment for unpopular schools. It might not be your nearest school. Class sizes might fluctuate. The playground may have portacabins for bulge years.
I would love my children to go to the nearest school, a mere 25mins walk instead of spending over 2hrs in the car driving to and fro to school each day. (And my eldest maybe being able to walk with her friends home)

not in any way feasible if you have a job to get to by 9, unless you're one of the lucky few that games the system by buyin property very near a desirable school.

I drive my 16 year old to school.
It is the best thing I have ever done. It takes about 5 minutes in, I have learnt not to say anything ...no "how was your day?". Just Hi.

Then the chat starts...for communication, it has been priceless. Way better than him catching the bus home and getting in 30 minutes later and then heading straight up to his room.

We talk about so many things on that drive to and from school.

The chat is 5 minutes in...the drive is 20-30!

It’s the lunatic parking I can’t stand! I’m school staff and having been used to lockdown traffic I have nearly been late to work twice this week having forgotten how parents think it’s acceptable to just stop, block the road, let their kid dawdle about, have a chat with someone doing the same thing going the other way....it’s an inner city school, roads are narrow, permits only etc so really no room for arseholery!

I think there is 'some truth' in what you are saying. I think a lot of people near me 'think' its quicker. But on foot we go down three snickets and by car you have to drive all the way round. And then there are other cars and deliveries and bin men to dodge. You then have to find somewhere to park. And then load and unload everyone and there stuff into the car. I find it makes 2-3 minutes difference tops. It isn't worth the hassle.

I have driven at some stages when i had another child to drop off at nursery after the school run. Having them both at the same place makes things much easier. I think this applies to many parents.

I have also had flexible employers who were not clock watchers. Who didn't care if i started at 855 900 905 910 etc. Not everyone is that lucky. I am also assertive and if someone puts in a 9am meeting i say in advance ill be with them at 9.10. If i still need to go home on time i do. And will do a longer day another day in the week or an hour at home. Its not questioned and i am trusted. Not everyone has that freedom.

Also many parents want to get to work asap so they can leave asap to be their for the kids at the end of the day-hence the rush.

I also think some people just don't enjoy walking. I love it. And i arrive at work fresh and ready to go having already done some exercise. So if you hate walking why would you choose to start your day like that.

I think my conclusion is. Don't judge. Each to their own.

I do judge, because it impacts MY children.

And because most of the parents on the school run can't drive or park - it's a miracle they don't crash more often - they put MY kids in danger.

The idiots also prevent any emergency services vehicle to come through. When even a Mini struggles to drive through 2 lines of badly parked cars, because "mummy" is too important to care, there is no chance in hell an ambulance or a fire truck would.

Schools are repeatedly begging parents to show a bit of respect. Parents are shamed on local group, photos taken. They don't give a damn. It proves the level of stupidity as their own children are put in danger too.

Mine are driven atm as the school have asked that all kids are dropped off and collected by an adult so that if there's any issues with the bubble (when DS's closed previously the school had got the call just at the start of the day so told everyone at the door and sent them all home). DS and DD have a 25 minute gap in their staggered drop off and pick up times. Getting my disabled youngest out and into her buggy or car seat takes a lot of time so I can't take one then go home and back out again, but it's also been too cold and wet to stand outside the school for 30 minutes at a time with her. Also she's CEV and it's been a huge decision for me to send the other two back to school, there are way too many people not bothering with social distancing or masks at the school gate to be comfortable having her there for an hour a day.

Also high school kids are being driven here as lots of trees and bushes haven't been cut back much over the last year so a couple of the paths that were iffy before are downright dangerous now. They are dark and secluded, it's awful that it's considered a "safe" route to school when multiple incidents have shown it's anything but.

Secondary school children that can walk should

@MrsHuntGeneNotJeremyObviously

If a sahp wants to drive their kids to school, that's their prerogative. A sahp time isn't public property with its best use to be determined by the general public. Fed up of the 'lazy sahm' trope on MN.

Nah, I'm not having that, sorry. I'm a SAHM and I walk every every school run. I do this because I don't want to be a part of the traffic and parking problems around the school. Also because its good for our health, we enjoy the walk, it's much easier to walk than loading the kids in/out of the car and because short, unnecessary car journeys are bloody awful for the environment.

The traffic and reckless parking around the school is dangerous for everyone. The pollution from the car fumes is dangerous for everyone. Its OK to be lazy if it's not affecting anyone else, but when people's laziness is actually causing a danger to others then that it's not OK at all. If it was only the people who truly have no choice but to drive the school run doing it then these dangers would be greatly reduced.

And if those who have to drive because of distance but are not constrained by time or disabilities parked a bit further away from the school (rather than parking as closely as possible because apparently they have forgotten what theirs or their child's legs are for) then that would also reduce the parking issues a lot.

If everyone who could do their bit did do their bit then it would be so much safer for everyone. But unfortunately people are too lazy.