Is walking to school not a thing anymore?

[cave canem]

1 to 2 miles from home to the high school.  

Even though I lived in a flat city, so no uphill both ways, I did walk a similar distance to school in midwestern weather.  

Is this considered too taxing now?

[catz]

Too taxing I don't think so. Too time consuming for kid for kids who are getting up too early and have jobs, and activities, and homework? Possibly.

[slackermom]

Where we live, neighborhood schools are not a thing anymore, so neither is walking. 

[Mrs_JWM]

Walking or biking is common here because we have a neighborhood school and its part of our neighborhood culture, but plenty of kids are also driven it ride the bus.

 

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[Arcadia]

My kids assigned elementary school is a mile away and by right we do not get school bus service for being too near. However we would have to walk across a highly used expressway which has drivers beating the red light very often. After the first few weeks where my district hired a school crossing guard for that crossing, the district decided on school busses because a crossing guard was nearly run down by a speeding car.

 

For the school nearest to me, nobody walks either as drivers speed even in the school zone. Those not eligible for school bus service get drop off by parents on their way to work.

 

The local high schools are in a relatively unsafe commercial area. Everyone gets school bus service.

Edited September 6, 2017 by Arcadia

[mom2scouts]

Yes. I was considered a terrible, mean mother (by other families) because my older kids had to walk 5-6 blocks to school in the winter in middle and high school. I would only drive them if there was a lightening storm or heavy downpour. There's always a huge line of parents waiting to drop off and pick up their children and parents seem to think everyone needs a car at 16. We still have neighborhood schools and don't even see many walkers on beautiful fall or spring days.

[Upennmama]

Lots of kids walk to our local school. I walked my two public school kids today. It;s about .8 miles. 

 

[Farrar]

Kids walk here. There are no school buses, so if you live close enough to your school, you walk (if you don't, you take the bus or subway). In general, I think this is common in cities and urban areas, less common in suburban ones.

[Kalmia]

Many of our elementary, middle, and high school students walk or bike here. There are sidewalks and the village is quiet without much traffic. Most of the people know each other and generally everyone watches out for the kids. Coming from a place where moms drive their huge SUV's 30 yards to pick up their kids at the bus stop at the entrance to their development, I was amazed when I first saw all the kids walking. I'd moved to Mayberry! It is a big confidence booster for them. It is considered very cool to walk among the elementary and middle school kids, so much so that several moms have taken to parking at the bowling alley so their country kid can walk about a half mile with their village dwelling friends. (Also so the moms avoid getting stuck behind someone slow in the pick up line). Also the kids in the village walk and ride their bikes all around town when they are not in school.

[Word Nerd]

My kids walk home from school, but I usually drop them off in the morning on my way to work (our school starts before 8).

[bookbard]

I always assumed I'd walk my daughter to and from school. She's in K and there's a dangerous road to cross (and no crossing) so I wouldn't send her alone. However, we never have time in the morning for a nice leisurely walk to school (which, if you have a younger sibling, it has to be!) It would take an hour to walk her there and home again, even though it's only a kilometre. I don't have a spare hour, and I doubt most people do nowadays. 

[theelfqueen]

When we moved here one of the reasons we chose this neighborhood is that we have neighborhood elementary, middle and high schools that are all walk in. No buses. Of course none of that matter any more now that we homeschool lol my kids walked some and got driven some ... depends on the day and the weather and... whatever. And my oldest choiced into another high school and had to get rides/drive.

 

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[mom2scouts]

Many of our elementary, middle, and high school students walk or bike here. There are sidewalks and the village is quiet without much traffic. Most of the people know each other and generally everyone watches out for the kids. Coming from a place where moms drive their huge SUV's 30 yards to pick up their kids at the bus stop at the entrance to their development, I was amazed when I first saw all the kids walking. 

 

Yes, even the kids who ride the bus get picked up at the bus stop by parents in cars! One neighborhood has a whole line of vehicles lined up near the bus stop. The development isn't very big and the kids wouldn't have to walk more than a few blocks from the bus stop to the farthest house.

[KungFuPanda]

Kids in my neighborhood walk to school. I don't know what the walking distance is before bus service kicks in. My daughter only walked about a quarter mile. It can't be too far for elementary school students because if you go over a mile you're at the next elementary school. I've driven dd when it was pouring or she was really late, but usually I didn't even wake up until she was in her first class. I almost never drove her home.

 

There seem to be plenty of walkers here, but the neighborhood is safe, populated, and has sidewalks and bike paths. The moms with strollers walk their little kids to and from school. It's sweet. The speed limit us low. There's a highway they don't expect anyone to walk a toss, so those kids ride the bus.

[Terabith]

When I was in graduate school, we took care of a couple in our building's two children for a week, while they were in Ireland.  School was maybe four blocks away, and they were in third and fifth grades.  I was surprised that an adult had to walk the children to school and pick them up.  It was a very residential neighborhood, with sidewalks the whole way and only one crossing, with a light and well behaved cars.  Lots of kids walked, but none of them walked unaccompanied.  I understand that for kindergarteners, but I think the older kids would have been completely safe walking.  I didn't mind walking them to/ from school at all, but it felt somewhat infantilizing.  And that was back around maybe 1999?

[nixpix5]

I walked from 1st grade through middle school myself but it isn't common in my area. I rarely see kids younger than 13 unaccompanied. My oldest took public transit starting in 5th grade from a town 40 miles outside of Seattle into Seattle for school. He had to be dropped at a park and ride in the morning and would catch a connector bus on a Seattle college campus and be dropped down a main road from his school. He learned safety, time management, awareness of his surroundings and natural consequences when you fell asleep on the bus and missed your stop. ;)

[Bluegoat]

Kids do walk here in neighbourhood schools, but the lower elementary kids always seem to be accompanied.  In newer suburbs, bussing seems the norm.  High school kids may be too far to walk.

 

There are some weird things.  There were some parents that flipped out near me when their kids went to jr high and had to cross a busy street. It had cross-walks and lights - people walk down there all the time.  I found the idea that regular 13 year olds couldn't manage it pretty odd.

 

Absolutely the weirdest thing to me is that parents have to be there to meet kids let off the bus.  So, a kid can walk home from school, but not home from the bus stop.  They actually keep your id on the bus if you are not there.

[Bluegoat]

FWIW - I live in roughly the same area I grew up in.  When I was a kid, children started walking themselves in K, and parents driving was rare.   So there does seem to be a clear change in expectations.

Edited September 6, 2017 by Bluegoat

[Liz CA]

I wonder if safety concerns are a much bigger issue today than 20 years ago.

Also, as some pointed out many schools nowadays are built on the outskirts of towns. We still have middle schools and one High School in town and I see kids walking in groups all the time - a little like a moving beehive. ;)

[Ottakee]

No one walks to the local elementary school here except the day care children from across the street that are walked over and back by staff.

 

We live just 2 doors down and our 3rd grade foster son was never allowed by the school to walk to or from. We live on a very busy rural road with 5mph speed limits, no side walks, and winter snow and ice.

 

Middle and high schools are 10+ miles away so no walking or bike riding either.

[momacacia]

I have a friend who walks her elementary age kids to school. I'm sure the oldest will take the bus to school when he starts middle.

[DawnM]

No sidewalks here and the only way to get to school would mean walking through people's yards and on very hilly terrain with ruts and grooves and sideways along one part of the hill.

 

My oldest drives himself.  My youngest takes the bus.

[MEmama]

Walking or riding your bike is common here, even in winter.

[catz]

I was going to say lots of people walk here too and my kid often did the 2 years he was in school. Our 2 neighborhood schools are within a mile of sidewalked residential streets for walkers. Even in the upper Midwest winter.

 

When it gets t be more than a 20 minute walk or with major roads, I can see why people may not.

[linders]

Where we live, there are almost no sidewalks, no shoulders (on 45 mph+ roads), no way to safely walk to many of the schools, even if you live within a mile or two.

[Carrie12345]

Well, it's relatively impossible here. Schools are 8-12 miles away. But we have kids who walk home from the bus stops.  Frankly, I don't like it, because our neighborhood isn't particularly safe for that.  I mistimed my errands and had to drive through throngs of walkers yesterday. 

 

The private roads of my development aren't state-standard width, and they're lined with drainage ditches, usually on both sides.  No shoulders or sidewalks or anything. Kids have to walk IN the road. That's why our development schedules Trick or Treating on weekends, during the day, and institutes a 5mph speed limit.

 

Outside of developments, we mostly have very hilly, winding, narrow (though not as much so) roads that go up to 55mph.

 

It was definitely an adjustment for me. I never took a school bus to school in all of K-12, and really only caught rides in high school, from friends.

Edited September 6, 2017 by Carrie12345

[SparklyUnicorn]

It's a thing here. 

[madteaparty]

I just had a dinner party and was told by one of my guests there is no busing at all in their district, small district under a couple miles. Even the Kindergardeners walk (with parents) or are driven by parents.

In NYC many kids take public transport or walk, obv

[regentrude]

No.

Small town here. We live 0.8 mile from the elementary school and 1 mile form the middle school. We were the only family in our street who walked to school. Everybody else drove (not dropping off kids on the way to work, but driving specifically to school and then coming back home to be a SAHM). We had very sweet and thoughtful people offer us rides half a mile from school because people could not imagine we walk because we want to.

Edited September 6, 2017 by regentrude

[Guest]

Here kids walk 1-2 miles to bus stop, depending on grade level (1 for ele, 2 for middle/high) -- country roads or development roads with no shoulder if they aren't in an apt complex.  Those within 1-2 miles of the building have courtesy priviliges - if there is a seat left, they can have it. If its subzero in the morning, the drivers stop and pick up all the walkers they have empty seats for.

 

Its dangerous to walk or bike -- too many scofflaws running red lights, ignoring pedestrian crossings, speeding, playing chicken with the crossing guard,  occupants who let unleashed aggressive dogs out, and the landlords don't have to remove snow until 24 hours after a snowfall, so often the dc have to walk in the road.

 

It was totally different when I was a kid. Our sidewalks and roads were cleared and we had a safe path to school, or to the bus, on all school days.  My district didn't close or delay for small amounts of snow either. I came home for lunch one year...as a second grader, and my mother did not walk me the four blocks - she had hot lunch ready when we arrived. The schools had coatrooms for our foul weather gear. We were expected to quickly put on snow or rain gear and go out for both recesses in elementary. (light rain was go out)

Edited September 6, 2017 by Heigh Ho

[marbel]

Too taxing I don't think so. Too time consuming for kid for kids who are getting up too early and have jobs, and activities, and homework? Possibly.

 

I agree with this. A 2-mile walk to school with a heavy backpack takes, what, 1/2 an hour?   That's a lot of dead time for some (busy) kids.  (Aside from the benefit of the exercise.)    

[prairiewindmomma]

We've been walking our dd to school.  There are only a handful of families that walk.  The school is very clearly designed to be a drop off/pick up line style of school.  Walking is inconvenient.  A lot of parents are clearly dropping on kids on their way to work.

[J-rap]

When I was growing up, anyone over one mile was able to bus.  My elementary school was 2 blocks away, so my best friend (one house away) and I walked to and from, and walked home for lunch every day too!  As we got a little older, we biked.  High school was one mile away, just under the bus requirement, so parents took turns carpooling to get us there, but we walked home.  A big group of us walked home together (about 20), and then slowly filtered out to our different neighborhoods as we got closer to home.  It was fun.  Not too many teens had their own car at my school.

 

In our current town, kids under a few blocks or so walk, but above that generally get rides from parents or bus.  Very few bike.  When my ds took classes at the local high school, he biked every day, even mid-winter (he'd arrive with icicles hanging from him);  but that was his choice!  I'd drive past him in the car bringing my dd. It was just under a mile.

[Bluegoat]

I agree with this. A 2-mile walk to school with a heavy backpack takes, what, 1/2 an hour?   That's a lot of dead time for some (busy) kids.  (Aside from the benefit of the exercise.)    

 

I kind of don't get this, though.  Most kids aren't getting enough exercise during the day.  Walking to school, if it's possible, seems like an ideal way to get some of it.

[Bluegoat]

Well, it's relatively impossible here. Schools are 8-12 miles away. But we have kids who walk home from the bus stops.  Frankly, I don't like it, because our neighborhood isn't particularly safe for that.  I mistimed my errands and had to drive through throngs of walkers yesterday. 

 

The private roads of my development aren't state-standard width, and they're lined with drainage ditches, usually on both sides.  No shoulders or sidewalks or anything. Kids have to walk IN the road. That's why our development schedules Trick or Treating on weekends, during the day, and institutes a 5mph speed limit.

 

Outside of developments, we mostly have very hilly, winding, narrow (though not as much so) roads that go up to 55mph.

 

It was definitely an adjustment for me. I never took a school bus to school in all of K-12, and really only caught rides in high school, from friends.

 

Surprisingly, wider roads aren't necessarily safer.  It seems like they should be, and traffic engineers used to think that they were, but they've found that people tend to drive faster on them, and that actually makes them more dangerous in many cases.

[SamanthaCarter]

I've seen plenty of kids walking to the middle school here. I think people walk if they are close enough. We kinda live in Mayberry. I let my 11 year old walk the 1/2+ mile to and from the library on his own and my 8 year old with a buddy. Some people worry and ask them if they are okay, but the kids just tell them that they have permission from their mom and say no more.

 

 

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Edited September 6, 2017 by SamanthaCarter

[Carrie12345]

Surprisingly, wider roads aren't necessarily safer.  It seems like they should be, and traffic engineers used to think that they were, but they've found that people tend to drive faster on them, and that actually makes them more dangerous in many cases.

 

That doesn't surprise me. But the fact remains that 2 cars don't have room to pass with pedestrians on the road, and our security routinely gives out tickets for people going 40mph or more on our 25mph roads.

[Elizabeth86]

Probably too hard today, but I have no idea as I live in a rural mountainous area and there is no way my kids could walk to school. The road to my house is several mile long and it is up up up. Like 7 miles or so just to town. Growing up I would have had to walked a me just to get too a school bus. There are only a handful of kids in reasonable walking distance.

Edited September 6, 2017 by Elizabeth86

[dirty ethel rackham]

For dd, it is a time thing rather than a too taxing thing. She could probably ride her bike that mile in less time, but she often has her art portfolio with her with large pieces. If I don't pick her up on climbing day, she has less than an hour to get anything done before we hop in the car for the commute.

 

I do lament the lack of kids walking to the elementary school a block away. It id a very walka le neighborhood. When my kids were little, they would stop what they were doing to "watch the parade" every day. Now, there are only a few families who walk. When I am out walking the dog, I see a huge long line of cars for drop off or pickup.

 

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[skimomma]

Very few kids walk in our district even though the elementary school is in the middle of a residential neighborhood.  I live 4 blocks from the school and the bus picks up the kids on my street.  Almost half of the kids in our district are school of choice so they are not eligible for bus service.  Between them and the parents who don't want their kids to have to take a long bus ride over a short distance, the drop off and pick up line is so long that the city is changing the roads to accommodate the lines of cars.  There are a few older kids that bike but not many.  Most are carrying far too much, especially those in band, to bike safely.  

 

I can see both sides.  Our city has very few sidewalks, none near the schools, and they are not cleared in the winter.  Winter is 6 months.  And during winter, kids are going to school is pitch dark.  The combo of cold, darkness, slick streets, and no sidewalks is not good for walkers.  OTOH, I think the city should have been maintaining the infrastructure and clearing of sidewalks all along so that kids (and other people) can safely walk around this town.  Instead of changing the road to accommodate the line of drop-off cars, they should invest in sidewalks, lighting, and crosswalks......  Heck, maybe public transit too so those school-of-choice kids do not all have to be individually driven to school.  I often walk when the roads are too slick for comfortable driving (or I am too lazy to shovel the drive) but I must be on constant lookout for traffic and prepared to jump up on a snowbank if a car is out of control near me.  That is not really a skill I would want to have a teach a 5yo.  Chicken and egg in our area is where we are right now.  I do not see the situation changing anytime soon.

[SKL]

Here you have to be 2 miles away to get bus service (last I checked).  Theoretically lots of kids can walk, but in reality many are driven to school by their parents.

 

I think the sea of cars at drop-off / pick-up is a problem and we should get back to more walking or at least car pooling, but nobody asked me.  :P

 

FTR my kids take the school bus, but unlike some parents, I don't drive them to the bus stop or wait with them.  :P

[MEmama]

I kind of don't get this, though. Most kids aren't getting enough exercise during the day. Walking to school, if it's possible, seems like an ideal way to get some of it.

We live 2 miles from the high school. In good weather DS bikes, but walking makes no sense. Soon it will be dark in the morning and will be getting dark after running practice. In winter, he'd be walking in the pitch black morning through the snow and ice, and again in the pitch dark after skiing. Trudging through feet of snow is slow and arduous; it definitely wouldn't make sense and would definitely be too much wasted time. He would have walked to the closer schools, but 2 miles --even though it doesn't sound like far--would be a total time suck.

 

Eta our town busses kids who live over 1 mile away.

Edited September 6, 2017 by MEmama

[SKL]

Very few kids walk in our district even though the elementary school is in the middle of a residential neighborhood.  I live 4 blocks from the school and the bus picks up the kids on my street.  Almost half of the kids in our district are school of choice so they are not eligible for bus service.  Between them and the parents who don't want their kids to have to take a long bus ride over a short distance, the drop off and pick up line is so long that the city is changing the roads to accommodate the lines of cars.  There are a few older kids that bike but not many.  Most are carrying far too much, especially those in band, to bike safely.  

 

I can see both sides.  Our city has very few sidewalks, none near the schools, and they are not cleared in the winter.  Winter is 6 months.  And during winter, kids are going to school is pitch dark.  The combo of cold, darkness, slick streets, and no sidewalks is not good for walkers.  OTOH, I think the city should have been maintaining the infrastructure and clearing of sidewalks all along so that kids (and other people) can safely walk around this town.  Instead of changing the road to accommodate the line of drop-off cars, they should invest in sidewalks, lighting, and crosswalks......  Heck, maybe public transit too so those school-of-choice kids do not all have to be individually driven to school.  I often walk when the roads are too slick for comfortable driving (or I am too lazy to shovel the drive) but I must be on constant lookout for traffic and prepared to jump up on a snowbank if a car is out of control near me.  That is not really a skill I would want to have a teach a 5yo.  Chicken and egg in our area is where we are right now.  I do not see the situation changing anytime soon.

 

Your locality sounds like the ones I grew up in, and we walked.  Even to KG.

 

The funny thing is that it would be a lot safer for walkers to walk if so many people didn't drive to school.

 

Unfortunately there are so many other (mostly false) fears that people don't want kids outside at all, so I think you're right about change not happening soon.

 

[marbel]

I kind of don't get this, though.  Most kids aren't getting enough exercise during the day.  Walking to school, if it's possible, seems like an ideal way to get some of it.

 

Yes, it is a good way to get some exercise.  But around here, high schools start at 7:30am.  So a kid walking two miles has to leave by 7:00, maybe a little earlier.  Or, the kid can drive (or be driven) and leave the house at 7:20.   20 minutes more sleep, 20 minutes time to eat a little breakfast (yeah, I know, probably most don't), maybe even 20 minutes to review for a test that day.   

 

So I'm not disagreeing, I'm just thinking about what it's like for the kid who has to do it.  Most kids are not going to think about the benefits of that 30-minute walk when they have other priorities.

[SKL]

I never felt like walking was a time suck.  Even in the deep snow (snow belt survivor here).  I used to take the long way in order to enjoy the outdoors before school, watch the sunrise and entertain myself with my thoughts.  After school I walked for hours delivering papers in the same weather.  Now at 50 I enjoy walking for miles each day when I get a chance.  Targeting 3 miles per day, and I have a full-time job and busy kids and a house to take care of.  So no, I don't think walking to & from school is a time suck.  But then I was not over-scheduled with paid activities when I was a kid.

[skimomma]

 

 

The funny thing is that it would be a lot safer for walkers to walk if so many people didn't drive to school.

 

 

 

Yes.  Snowball effect.

 

And I really don't blame some parents.  The kids next door sit on the bus for 45 minutes to get to a school 4 blocks away. The bus picks up each kid at their individual houses....because....no sidewalks.....and meanders all over the city.  I wouldn't want my kid wasting 90 minutes a day sitting on a bus when I could drive them in literally 5 minutes.  I am one of the least susceptible to irrational fear of the parents I know but I still would not want a 5, 6, or 7 yo walking 4 snowy  blocks in the dark with no sidewalk....or sitting on a bus for 45 minutes.  I would be more inclined to walk my kid to school but most parents are driving on to work anyway so it is what it is.

Edited September 6, 2017 by skimomma

[maize]

Kids around here walk. My son's elementary school is almost all walkers--well, some kids bike and a lot ride those kick scooters.

[SKL]

Most kids are not going to think about the benefits of that 30-minute walk when they have other priorities.

 

Why is it up to the kids?

 

I'm pretty sure they would think more clearly if they had some exercise (especially on a nice brisk cold day) before school.

 

If my kids' school wasn't 5 miles away, I'd love for them to walk.

[MEmama]

I never felt like walking was a time suck. Even in the deep snow (snow belt survivor here). I used to take the long way in order to enjoy the outdoors before school, watch the sunrise and entertain myself with my thoughts. After school I walked for hours delivering papers in the same weather. Now at 50 I enjoy walking for miles each day when I get a chance. Targeting 3 miles per day, and I have a full-time job and busy kids and a house to take care of. So no, I don't think walking to & from school is a time suck. But then I was not over-scheduled with paid activities when I was a kid.

Well we tend to prefer cycling or walking to driving whenever possible and normally don't view it as a time suck either, but from the perspective of a high school student who has to juggle classes, sports (through the school, thanks, not paid activities not that it should matter) and homework--and who has a healthy sleep 10 hour sleep schedule--yeah, that extra 1/2 hour + of trudging through snow with a heavy backpack is definitely wasted time and energy with no benefit. Can it be done? Of course. But I'd rather avoid it, have extra family time and less stress. I doubt that's weird.

[ksr5377]

Kids still walk around here, *if* they are close enough. However, more and more schools are being rebuilt on the outside of the main town, in the county limits (which eventually causes the city to annex those areas) that it's not really feasible for those schools' students.

 

 

This is what has happened in our town.  There is basically a school campus on the outside of town where they built the new high school and middle school, then just last year they built the new elementary school out there.  To get to it you have to drive over a bridge that goes over a 4-lane highway.  There is no sidewalk across the bridge.  Now everyone gets to ride the bus even though there are many people who live less than half a mile from the school.