Bus ride too long in East Cobb schools. (Atlanta, Plains: house, school district)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 1.5 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Also the reason why it's about 30 mins. instead of 15 in Long Island is that subdivisions here are as big as some towns in the Northeast. It takes me 5 minutes just to get to the entrance of the neighborhood from my house and I'm not in the back of the neighborhood either.
Also the bus in our neighborhood stops every ten houses both sides of the street so that eats up a little time too. Actually there are several buses in our neighborhood that go to the elementary school alone.
My daughter was on an "early" bus in elementary school. She actually liked getting to school early and having time to greet friends and ease into the school day. When she moved on to middle school and found herself on a "late" route, she *hated* some days not even having time to get to her locker before the bell rang.
I really can't believe how many people drive their kids to school around here (north east Cobb). It's so wasteful of non-renewable resources and personal time. The only time my child gets a ride to school is if she needs to transport a bulky project or costume, or if we accidentally oversleep.
My daughter was on an "early" bus in elementary school. She actually liked getting to school early and having time to greet friends and ease into the school day. When she moved on to middle school and found herself on a "late" route, she *hated* some days not even having time to get to her locker before the bell rang.
I really can't believe how many people drive their kids to school around here (north east Cobb). It's so wasteful of non-renewable resources and personal time. The only time my child gets a ride to school is if she needs to transport a bulky project or costume, or if we accidentally oversleep.
I agree. It is a total disgrace. Also in our neighborhood we have families that drive to the bus stop. The longest walk in our community is about the length of one city block. One family drives two houses down then puts it in reverse after the kids get on the bus. On any given rainy day there are ten or more cars parked and waiting making dispersal extremely dangerous. What is wrong with people?
There are very valid reasons why some parents drive their kids to school..
1) Before school activities that they would not be able to partake in because the bus arrives to school after the activity commences.
2) Buses can have behavioral problems and or bullying when there is one driver with 50 or so kids who can only view them in the rear view mirror.
3) In the summer months, many of these buses lack air conditioning and driving around in an auto in 100 degree weather is nothing short of misery. I don't know anyone who drives around themselves in blazing heat without their air on but we subject our children to it.
4) Depending on your subdivisions bus schedule and what bus load a lot of time is wasted that can be used more productively. I don't see the point of getting to school 45 minutes before it commences to twittle your thumbs at the price of less sleep for elementary school children. Nor do I see the advantage of a middle schooler getting home at 5:00PM, its a late day already especially if they are involved in an after school activity, have to do homework and have a snack and dinner.
5) A bus drops off a kid at the bus stop whether or not there parent is there. If you live in a place either where there are no other kids or you are not social with your neighbors either because you are new and don't know them or what not and you have an emergency your child is left to fend for themselves. Whereas if you pick them up at school, in the event of an emergency you know your child is safe until you get there.
6) The child may not attend the school in which they are zoned for and hence do not receive bus service.
7) A parent may need to pick up their child to get to an afterschool activity or Dr's appointment on time.
Now obviously buses work for many families but one size doesn't fit all. How many people use mass transit to get to work? I find interesting people complaining about this when we have roads that don't interconnect to other subdivisions and I hear no one complaining about that, and I don't see a cry for mass transit in Atlanta.
C'mon happystreet, you can't seriously think we're complaining about parents dropping off a child for before-school band practice or picking up for a doctor's appointment, etc. The complaint is about the numerous parents who regularly drive their child or children to and from their local school, despite the bus transportation provided. You can strike most of your list right off the bat. I don't think the others are justifiable in most cases, either.
C'mon happystreet, you can't seriously think we're complaining about parents dropping off a child for before-school band practice or picking up for a doctor's appointment, etc. The complaint is about the numerous parents who regularly drive their child or children to and from their local school, despite the bus transportation provided. You can strike most of your list right off the bat. I don't think the others are justifiable in most cases, either.
C'mon happystreet, you can't seriously think we're complaining about parents dropping off a child for before-school band practice or picking up for a doctor's appointment, etc. The complaint is about the numerous parents who regularly drive their child or children to and from their local school, despite the bus transportation provided. You can strike most of your list right off the bat. I don't think the others are justifiable in most cases, either.
Don't discount bullying. My oldest child rode the bus for awhile in middle school and as a freshman in high school. When the teasing and bullying got to be too much we started driving her. Complaints to the school were ignored. I became what you loathe: a parent that drives his child to school. And I feel it was the right decision.
We also drive our youngest to the bus stop. But that's because it's a half-mile away.
Don't discount bullying. My oldest child rode the bus for awhile in middle school and as a freshman in high school. When the teasing and bullying got to be too much we started driving her. Complaints to the school were ignored. I became what you loathe: a parent that drives his child to school. And I feel it was the right decision.
We also drive our youngest to the bus stop. But that's because it's a half-mile away.
I hear you on the bullying issue, billl, and it's terrible that you weren't able to get any action from the school.
However, I just don't think the majority of cars lined up outside of schools every morning and every afternoon are transporting a child who has a special reason, such as bullying, to not take the bus. It's not credible. I suspect there are a lot more cases like the lovely woman who cuts my hair. She resides in a nearby subdivision and her kids attend the same schools as my kid, and neither of her kids (now in middle and high school) has ever taken the school bus, not once. The family considers it "not nice".
About driving your youngest the half mile to the bus stop ... when did things change in this country so that a five or six year old was deemed incapable of walking a half mile? Perhaps you're concerned about supervision and feel that no adult in the family has time to walk up to the stop with him or her, and back again. This kind of thinking is prevalent, I know, but it's part of the wave of obesity, particularly childhood obesity, that's been sweeping the nation. Sorry, but Americans really need to start reversing this kind of lifestyle choice for the good of our kids' health, and our own.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $53,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 1.5 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
