Why don't kids walk to school anymore

[Failingatthemoment]

I'm obviously old. BUT, when I went to school the majority of kids walked to school on their own from around the ages of 7/8. Now it only seems that ( some) secondary school kids do this.

People usually need their cars for work how are they supposed to manage?

I wasn't allowed to walk alone til Y5 and that was with my Y6 brother. And the same it wasn't til Y6 I was allowed into town.

Our route to school involves crossing two of the busiest roads in the city (no crossing staff). Also incorporates the main commuter cycle route with cyclists routinely jumping red lights. You need excellent road sense and no lapse of concentration ever to be sure of crossing safely. I don't think an 8 year old would always have that.

My secondary school age child walks my 10 year old to school and I would expect him to be walking alone with his friends in 2 years time, but the main difference between them and me (walking unaccompanied from age 6) is the traffic. We do always walk though.

https://www.lancashire.gov.uk/children-education-families/schools/school-transport/school-bus-season-tickets/?page=2

I’ve just double checked and under 3 miles is £48.60 a month now.
Over 8 miles is £83.60 a month per child - we are quite rural so lots will travel.
Easy to see why lots are driven not bus at secondary age.

How do I do that when I'm disabled and can't walk (I get high rate mobility on PIP) and also live rurally with no bus service in my village bar one school bus in the morning that returns in the afternoon?

Interesting article (ok it's in the Express, sorry about that) https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/793862/crossing-the-road-age-children-scientists

"CHILDREN are not safe crossing the road on their own until they are 14, say scientists.

Their visual judgement and motor skills have not fully developed before then - putting them at risk each time they negotiate a busy street, according to new research.
A study using a simulated virtual traffic environment showed accident rates can reach as high as eight percent among six year-olds.
Even those aged 12 were struck by vehicles two percent of the time - and had to compensate for their lack of judgement by choosing bigger gaps in traffic.
"It was not until early adolescence youngsters got across without incident, according to the findings published in Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance,
Psychologist Professor Jodie Plumert, of Iowa University, said: "Some people think younger children may be able to perform like adults when crossing the street.
"Our study shows that's not necessarily the case on busy roads where traffic doesn't stop."

School is 10 miles away so not sure they'd have the time to walk!

I also think Covid has had an impact on road skills. I took a group of 10-12 yr olds on a treasure hunt around town and was shocked how little road awareness they had. I’d definitely factor it in on any future trips out.

DD is due to start school in September. She'll be driven because there is no footpath down the main road you would have to walk on to get there plus even if you could it would be 40-45 mins at adult walking pace so dread to think at 4 yr old pace! (2+ miles depending on route).

Long standing issues from pregnancy mean cycling isn't an option. Besides that I don't really have time to walk there and back and get my working hours in even if I wanted to!

We live in totally different times its not particularly safe for kids to walk these days for alsorts of reasons unfortunately

@Ladykryptonite maybe cycling isn't an option if you live in a flat or on busy roads or your child isn't a confident cyclist like mine. It's not for everyone.

Not trying to be on a moral high horse – but how else do you stay fit and healthy, other than incorporating it into your day like this? Sounds like you do this already – great.

But getting up out of bed, then sitting at a breakfast table, followed by sitting in a car then sitting most of the day at school, repeat 5x a week is NOT what we should be thinking of as normal. It's sickness-inducing.

We live probably about 1.5-2 miles from school - across a wet/muddy field and then down the verge of a 60mph A road with no pavements. I suppose in theory my Y5 one could walk (but would arrive at school muddy and at this time of year, covered in ticks), but my reception one couldn't, so there is no point not just driving them both.

We don't walk with them because I have better things to be doing than spending 2 hours a day walking to and from school.

"We don't walk with them because I have better things to be doing than spending 2 hours a day walking to and from school."

Like what?

Like work?

That's a more necessary thing to do.

It's not better.

I just can't imagine the luxury of having kids and having a hours of the week to fritter away to be honest. Even if you're a SAHM there's always lots to do.

My kids are at a school 5 minutes away so its doable but like fuck would I spending 2 hours a day on the school run if I didn't have to.

I walked to school from the age of 7 with my little brother who was 5. But there were loads of us kids that all walked to school the same way so we weren't on our own IYSWIM? This would have been 1985/6.

My parent wonky had 1 car and my mum couldn't drive then so there was no other option. We would t have gone to a school that we could t walk to.

DS was driven to primary as it was further away (RC school) but on the 1 day a week I worked at home (and therefore didn't have to run for a train) I could let him scoot there and I would walk there and back. Had wfh been more of a thing then I would have done that several days a week.

It's not "frittering away" – what an odd way to look at it. It's a long-term investment in your health.

It's 10 hours a week many people won't have to spare.

Mrs j- what I mean is, it would be great if people started building lives that did not revolve around the car, if this is physically possible, plenty of families do not own cars

I do think it would be better for more children to have the option of a local school. Personally I'd find driving a school run really stressful and am grateful I can walk school runs without giving up hours of my time but that's a luxury many won't have.

DS is y7. In theory he could walk. It's about 30 mins but scarey traffic (worst outside school. Other parents are a disgrace). He has ASD and he was bullied so I'm keeping him safe for now and picking him up. Plus he sees Dad for contact so Dad also collects for that reason.

If my DS gets into the local school, he will be walking (with me) the 10 minute walk. If he doesn't, the school in which children in my area have been allocated is a 40 minute walk down a "high casualty" A road with no pedestrian crossing at a busy roundabout...not exactly suitable for a 4-year-old. No public transit available. If we don't get our first choice, he will be driven (directly past the local school) and I won't feel bad about it whatsoever.

My primary school was next to a busy road with no crossings and an incident about once a term. I do wish as a society we could do more to make our schools safer for pedestrians. I remember a thread on here about a school with no footpath and you had to keep going single file when a car was driving in, crazy when you've got small children walking.