Driving kids to/from school (crime, home, neighborhoods)

[veloman777]

Why do so many parents need to drive kids to and from public school today?

Is there a problem with the bus? Maybe there isn't bus service anymore?

I thought I wasn't that old, but I guess I am. I grew up in the 90s in a suburban town and never had my parents driving me around to/from school. At school, there was only a handful of parents doing it, not a line of cars a quarter mile long parked idling every afternoon near the schools.

What happened over the last 15 years?

[mesmer]

They only bus if you're more than two miles away, and a lot of parents aren't comfortable with their kids walking that far. Probably reasonable if you've got a kindergartner, less so if you've got an 8th grader.

[FalconheadWest]

There are a lot more stay at home mom's in Lake Travis than where I grew up, so I just figured it was that. My kids' school doesn't just have a car pick up line, but they have a "parent pick up" which means the parents park and go inside to the gym to pick up there kids, and then a card has to be scanned to make sure the kid is leaving with the correct adult. But they don't scan anything for the cars, and you would think they would want to as anyone with a name in the front window can pick up any kid.

I have mine doing extended care so I can pick up after hours, and then ride the bus everyday to school but only once a week home as a treat. That means I have to be done working to meet the bus because everyone under 3rd grade has to have a parent at the bus stop or they can't get off the bus.

So many new rules since the 80's & 90's.

[Gorfml]

What happened? Parents have gone full retard... Some of these helicopters are waiting in the line an hour before school gets out. Usually just because they don't want their kid to go through the horror of riding alone on the bus... It's pathetic...

[Austin97]

Originally Posted by veloman777

Why do so many parents need to drive kids to and from public school today?

Is there a problem with the bus? Maybe there isn't bus service anymore?

I thought I wasn't that old, but I guess I am. I grew up in the 90s in a suburban town and never had my parents driving me around to/from school. At school, there was only a handful of parents doing it, not a line of cars a quarter mile long parked idling every afternoon near the schools.

What happened over the last 15 years?

We dont get bus service because we live too close. My 7 year old can ride the mile but we drive her instead. Next year she might start riding on her own. Many of the families live across major streets like spicewood springs so they probably drive their kids.

[Austin97]

Originally Posted by Gorfml

What happened? Parents have gone full retard... Some of these helicopters are waiting in the line an hour before school gets out. Usually just because they don't want their kid to go through the horror of riding alone on the bus... It's pathetic...

I get there early because if I get there early then I can pick up my kid right away. If I get there later, the line only moves when someone before me picks up their kid.

We have activities after school so need the predictability. As I mentioned in my other post, there is no bus for us and for many of the students.

[LiveUrban]

Yeah unfortunately so few parents allow their kids to bike to school anymore..

[TXEX06]

I've noticed less elementary schools built in the center of neighborhoods and more built along busy streets.

[scm53]

I've noticed it too, and I think it is just a reflection of the crazy times that have evolved over the last fifteen or so years. There are some weirdos out there, and no one wants to take a chance with their kid.

The state reimburses ISDs for kids that live more than two miles. Part of the issue is that our sedentary lifestyles have made that too far for Susie to walk or even ride a bike. Another part is that we are building bigger and bigger schools because they are cheaper to operate. The twelve classroom school right in the middle of every neighborhood is a thing of the past.

It is a combination of all these things that leads to the car line ups.

[tstwahine]

It seems that its quite common nowadays. I took the bus until 3rd grade when they started charging (i grew up in the late 80's/early 90's) and once they started charging for us to take the bus it was either walk or ride your bicycle for us. Starting around age 7 was when my parents let us bicycle by ourselves - 3 miles in the summer to our swimming lessons at the local YMCA on a major road (in CA but I would say the road is similar to lamar traffic wise). We were fine. If I end up having kids they will be handling their own transportation after the age of seven. People are seriously helicopter parents these days. My parents didn't love me any less... they used to walk to school too (in Iowa... you know, 3 feet of snow, uphill both ways ) so I feel pretty lucky that the weather wasn't too terrible. The only time I minded it was when it rained, my jeans took hours to dry in class. Kids seem coddled too much - my parents always said that accidents only happened to children that weren't taught to pay attention by their parents... darwinism... harsh but true and I'm inclined to agree.

The only time I would argue against that would be if you lived in a crime filled area.