Parents and G Parents, I Have a Question

[Calamity Kris]

I was stuck at the office a little late today.  I got out just in time for pick up your kids from school time.  Every elementary school I got near had traffic down the streets and around the corners for a considerable distance.  Dozens upon dozens or adults in cars were lined up to pick up little Johnny or Suzie from school.  In a couple of cases, they had to have Sheriff's deputies directing traffic because of the amount of cars and traffic congestion.

 

Why???

 

Is there a reason why elementary school kids can't take busses?  The amount of traffic issues and headaches caused by this, let alone the amount of fuel all these vehicles are burning just sitting in line idling blows the mind. 

 

Please explain this to me. 

[Yul Lose]

Out where I live the busses don’t run. Our street isn’t county maintained so the busses aren’t allowed. The road is about 5 miles long and has lots of families with kids living along it. It meets up with a very busy highway and there’s really no safe ways for the busses to stop and pick the kids up. About a 1/4 mile down the highway on the other side is where busses pick up and drop off the kids, but being the hazard that it is very few from our street tempt fate and arrange for or pick up and drop off their kids. I see a few high school aged kids walking along the road occasionally after being dropped off but never the younger ones.

Edited August 27 by Yul Lose

[Forty Rod SASS 3935]

We rode buses, bikes, walked and almost NEVER got taken to school unless someone was going by there any way.   Lincoln Grade School was six blocks. Kindergarten was an exception because it was down  a mile away by the railroad marshaling yard and there were no buses down that way.

 

Even then Mom, Mrs. Kim and Mrs. Corderman took seven or eight kids each down and back twice a day.  About 20 kids in each class, one morning and one afternoon.

[Subdeacon Joe]

A lot of school districts don't have bus service,  or don't offer it unless the kids live more than some set distance from the school.

 

Reasons are lack of drivers, insurance requirements,  and budget constraints. 

[Texas Jack Black]

We walked to school 5mi uphill both ways . My brother and I had to share a pair of old worn- out sneakers and on even days he carried me the five miles and on the odd days I carried him .🙃

[Rip Snorter]

I walked grade school through HS.  I took my kids to school and picked them up whenever I could which was a good part of the time because I wanted to.  Big schools, plenty of parking.  I would even ride one of my bicycles with one of theirs, lock theirs in the racks.  Probably under a mile to the schools by Bike / walking path. When I am in Billings, I see the traffic situation you describe.  Apparently something has changed since they were in school, even here in Montana.  Of course they are in their 30's 40's!

[Rye Miles #13621]

My town has a bus service the schools use called First Child, there’s a high school and middle school combined, 4 elementary schools and a preschool/ kindergarten. Theres still  lot of cars picking up the kids but nothing that causes traffic woes.

Edited August 28 by Rye Miles #13621

[Subdeacon Joe]

59 minutes ago, Texas Jack Black said:

We walked to school 5mi uphill both ways . My brother and I had to share a pair of old worn- out sneakers and on even days he carried me the five miles and on the odd days I carried him .🙃

 

 

Through 6 foot deep in 120°F heat in July. 

[Blackwater 53393]

When I started school, we walked a quarter mile to the end of the road where we caught the school bus. It took us across town to the school.

 

We moved before the end of the school year and the new school was two miles away by road, but there was no bus service. We could walk up the power line and cross the turnpike bridge, which was about a mile, or one of the parents would drive us around by the road if the weather was bad.

 

The next school I attended was just one block from the first house we lived in and seven blocks from the last house we rented before moving mid year of my sixth grade year. There was no bus service throughout the entire town.

 

It was three blocks to the last grammar school I attended.

 

We moved south after sixth grade. Now I was eight miles from school and rode the bus every day.  We moved to a place just over a mile from the school. I could take a shortcut across a couple of back yards and the campus for the school for the blind and cut it to half a mile. I rode the bus when the weather was bad and rode my bicycle or walked when it was nice because I could get home before the bus dropped off the kids that rode it.

 

I got my provisional driver’s license when I was fourteen and from then on, I either drove or rode a motorcycle.

 

Schools around here have large parking lots that can accommodate both busses and parental pickup. If your property doesn’t adjoin the school grounds here, you must either ride the bus or be picked up until you’re old enough to drive. Students driving are assigned parking spaces at the high schools!

[Sgt. C.J. Sabre, SASS #46770]

In our case, the busses just didn't fun to where we are, and it's not like we're out of town. Now for Elementary School, we DID have bus service, and my daughter used it. Jr. High and High school, no. I wanted to make her ride her bicycle to school, but her Mother wouldn't have it. The traffic was bad back then, (2008 ish), and it's worse now.  After all we can't expect little Johnny or Suzie to fend for themselves, can we.

And yes, I'm going to go there with some of the other guys here. I rode a bicycle to Elementary and High School. Jr. High we had a bus. 

To be honest, I LIKED riding my bike. It gave me a sense of freedom that I still love today. I'd still get my self where I want to be than be driven. 

[Trailrider #896]

Seventy-odd years ago, I lived in Chicago. The grade school was about 10 blocks from my house. I had to cross a busy street, but the school district assigned crossing guards to hold the kids back until it was clear to cross (no traffic). Most of the guards were 6th, 7th or 8th graders. I was one in 6th grade (we moved away after that). In one instance a kid disregarded my outstretched arms and went around them, and was struck a glancing blow and knocked down! The car stopped, and the kid was okay. Of course, the incident had to be reported to the school. Don't recall what happened to the kid. I wasn't blamed.

 

Nowadays, it may not be safe to let young children walk to school without an adult or at least a bunch of other kids. Even when out girls were in grade school, and it was only about four blocks away, my wife walked with them at least within sight of the school grounds. That was about 40 years ago, and the neighborhood was relatively quiet.

 

Two years ago, a twelve-year-old boy was riding his scooter, and started across the street at a busy place. He had the traffic light with him. A #%&@!!! ran the red light and killed the boy, and sped off! Don't know what the punishment actually was, but the max was a year in jail and $5,000 fine! (State law in Colorado!). Had it been up to me, that guy would still be dangling from the light pole where he hit the boy!

[Jimmy Reb, SASS #54804]

Never rode the bus to school. 

2 reasons. One, always lived to close to school. Rode my bike until I got my driver's license.  Two, my dad drove for greyhound bus lines (back when they were big) and would not allow me or my sister to ride on school busses. He insisted they were not safe and the drivers did not have proper training. 

[Blackwater 53393]

When I started school, we walked a quarter mile to the end of the road where we caught the school bus. It took us across town to the school.

 

We moved before the end of the school year and the new school was two miles away by road, but there was no bus service. We could walk up the power line and cross the turnpike bridge, which was about a mile, or one of the parents would drive us around by the road if the weather was bad.

 

The next school I attended was just one block from the first house we lived in and seven blocks from the last house we rented before moving mid year of my sixth grade year. There was no bus service throughout the entire town.

 

It was three blocks to the last grammar school I attended.

 

We moved south after sixth grade. Now I was eight miles from school and rode the bus every day.  We moved to a place just over a mile from the school. I could take a shortcut across a couple of back yards and the campus for the school for the blind and cut it to half a mile. I rode the bus when the weather was bad and rode my bicycle or walked when it was nice because I could get home before the bus dropped off the kids that rode it.

 

I got my provisional driver’s license when I was fourteen and from then on, I either drove or rode a motorcycle.

 

Schools around here have large parking lots that can accommodate both busses and parental pickup. If your property doesn’t adjoin the school grounds here, you must either ride the bus or be picked up until you’re old enough to drive. Students driving are assigned parking spaces at the high schools!

[Brock]

sometimes the public schools have busses and the Catholic Schools do not.  And no bus if you live within a mile of school. it really varies

[Capt. R. Hugh Kidnme]

Say it with me now.......... Budget cuts.

[Calamity Kris]

Thanks for the info.  I neglected to take lack of funding for busses into account.  This is not a rural situation.  No busses in that situation I could understand.  This is in the middle of an urban area.  Unfortunately, one of these schools I passed is directly across the street from the municipal police/fire/ambulance station.  I can only imagine what a disaster it would be if they had a major alarm at school pickup time.  

 

We walked in elementary school.  It was about a mile up hill home.  The only time mom picked us up was when the weather was really horrific.  Middle school was about 8 miles and I found walking home to be faster than taking the bus.  The bus stop was down hill at the elementary school and the bus usually passed me as I was turning the corner towards the house.  I didn't get a bike until high school.  That was 3-ish miles away and I rode it bad weather/good weather didn't matter.  I was hit by a car once on my way to school.  I was crossings a street and they didn't stop at the stop sign.  Destroyed the bike and shook me up a bit but I made it.  They have since blocked off that road so you can't turn on to the busy roadway any longer.

 

Thanks for the info.

[Cypress Sun]

These days, I think that public schools will not release students for pick up unless the person picking them up is on the approved list. Quite frankly, I don't blame them with all of the parental and pervert abductions that seem to be in the news everyday. Tragedies like Jennifer Odom, Jessica Lungsford and many, many others have made people aware that there are seriously demented people that are on the prowl for victims that, if they get your kid, you'll never see your child alive again. I really don't mind if I'm delayed a few minutes or so because of a parent that cared enough to pick up their kid from school.

 

 

 

 

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Broward County provides school bus transportation for eligible students, with registration required through the “Register 2 Ride” system and real-time tracking available via the Here Comes the Bus app.

Overview

Broward County Schools operates over 1,000 school buses, transporting more than 50,000 students daily to 234 locations, covering over 16 million miles annually Winston Park Elementary. Transportation is coordinated with all schools to ensure students and parents receive timely information about routes, schedules, and safety.

Eligibility and Policies

• Students are eligible for transportation if they meet distance or program requirements, such as living more than 2 miles from their school or being enrolled in special programs like ESE, 504, Foster, Homeless, or Teen Parent Winston Park Elementary+1.
• After the first 15 school days, students not otherwise eligible may apply for the Empty Seat Program if seats are available on existing routes Winston Park Elementary+1.
• Parents are responsible for ensuring their child arrives at the assigned bus stop for empty seat assignments.
• Safety concerns, reckless driving, or inappropriate behavior on buses can be reported to 754-321-4400 with detailed information including bus number, location, and time Winston Park Elementary.

Registration Process

• All eligible students must register for a bus assignment through Register 2 Ride at https://tfsweb.browardschools.com/ride using their student account Winston Park Elementary+1.
• Deadlines for 2026-2027 school year:
  • Register by June 26, 2026 to guarantee a bus for the first day of school.
  • Register by July 10, 2026 to guarantee a bus by the second week of school.
  • Registrations after July 10 will be processed in the order received Winston Park Elementary.
• Students who registered last year but did not ride must re-register using their student ID.

Tracking and Communication

• Parents can track buses in real-time using the Here Comes the Bus app, available starting August 24, 2026 Winston Park Elementary.
• Bus information, including stop locations and schedules, can also be accessed via the Focus Parent Portal.
• Schools may establish new bus stops within 5-7 working days after requests, ensuring safety and communication with parents and bus operators Winston Park Elementary.

Additional Information

• Transportation registration for special programs remains unchanged.
• Unregistered students waiting at a bus stop without a parent/guardian will be transported to school but not home; parents must arrange return transportation Winston Park Elementary.
• Broward County also offers employment opportunities for school bus operators through the Student Transportation department Winston Park Elementary.
  For more details, parents and students can visit the Broward Schools Student Transportation & Fleet Services website or contact the department directly via email or phone.

Edited August 28 by Cypress Sun

[Calamity Kris]

Thanks for the info, Cypress.  I looked up my county and one of the school areas.  Apparently there isn't a bus available for those kids.  That's really unfortunate.  The county I'm in is desperate for bus drivers.  Lots of advertising on the county website for bus drivers.

[The Original Lumpy Gritz]

12 minutes ago, Calamity Kris said:

Thanks for the info, Cypress.  I looked up my county and one of the school areas.  Apparently there isn't a bus available for those kids.  That's really unfortunate.  The county I'm in is desperate for bus drivers.  Lots of advertising on the county website for bus drivers.

A commercial driver's license with School Bus Endorsement is very involved to get.

[Calamity Kris]

5 minutes ago, The Original Lumpy Gritz said:

A commercial driver's license with School Bus Endorsement is very involved to get.

 

For what they're advertising the starting pay as, I can't imagine a lot of folks wanting to go through all that.....

[Brock]

My helper remarked that school is open because she saw the busses. I told it’s new drivers learning their routes.

[watab kid]

so muxh to say but ............

 

ive not had kids in school for over 20 years my wife deals with the grandkids and has expressed some of the same complaints , i get it but they are our kids - we care and even tho we dont seem to care what they are indoctrinated with during  the day we want them home safe at night , ill endure it if i get assigned to it , 

 

i did ride the bus to and from for a part of a decade in the 50s , hated it , 

[Chantry]

In today's society some parents don't want to entrust their precious little monsters to a bus driver or allow them to walk home

[MizPete]

On 8/28/2026 at 11:14 AM, Brock said:

Catholic Schools do not.  (have busses)

Catholic schools do not need busses.  All the elementary schools need is two Catholic moms directing traffic in/out.  Catholics know how to move a line.

[watab kid]

On 8/29/2026 at 3:44 PM, MizPete said:

Catholic schools do not need busses.  All the elementary schools need is two Catholic moms directing traffic in/out.  Catholics know how to move a line.

ill give you that , if nuns are involved the lines stayed straight too , - no fraternizing either ., 

 

On 8/29/2026 at 7:10 AM, Chantry said:

In today's society some parents don't want to entrust their precious little monsters to a bus driver or allow them to walk home

and some bus drivers are very glad those little monsters arent on their bus too , 

[PowderRiverCowboy]

Our great City and school official's decided about 10 years back to dump Bussing so real pain. I guess the would rather have a new 15-16 year old driver navigating the streets to  school on ice then a bus . 

They have also added a full week to the year for bad weather but still have remote learning on those "school closed days"?

 

[Stump Water]

While finding drivers is sometimes a problem, there are plenty of busses here and they run... with maybe 10 or 15 kids on them. 

 

Why do the majority of kids get shuttled by parents?  I'll put it this way... when the kids get their license they're all driving brand new cars.  Draw your own conclusion.

 

 

[Rip Snorter]

12 minutes ago, Stump Water said:

While finding drivers is sometimes a problem, there are plenty of busses here and they run... with maybe 10 or 15 kids on them. 

 

Why do the majority of kids get shuttled by parents?  I'll put it this way... when the kids get their license they're all driving brand new cars.  Draw your own conclusion.

 

 

Plenty of busses but also bullying - neither of my kids would put up with it and all parties involved were punished in that school system.  Much smoother course to take them.  Neither of my kids got cars till late in College and they were hand me downs.

[Cactus Jack Calder]

I grew up in a NJ Suburb of NYC. Walked 1 mile to and from school years K - 6. Mostly along an old trolley track that had been stripped of the rails and ties, just stone ballast, weeds and broken bottles. 

A local bus co contracted for grade's 7 - 9 at 5 miles to Jr High. The drivers were co employees and didn’t take abuse from wiseacre kids. They’d just leave you standing at the bus stop on the corner. Once when I was late to the bus stop the driver idled along with me banging on the door for him to stop. He thought he would teach me a lesson in punctuality. I saw a brown object in my peripheral vision as I’m running. Turned to look just as I smacked my face into a utility pole. Knocked me out for a minute or two. The driver stopped then, he was sure he was going to loose his job over that incident. I never said anything to the school about it. Though I sometimes wonder if the flat spot in the middle of my forehead is related to that incident. 

Walked or rode a bike to Sr High, grades 10 -12 only 2 miles . Never drove a car to public school, I didn’t have a license until just before graduation. The school had a Drivers Ed course where I got my early training. When I came home with my first license my Dad said, “Let me see that.” He pocketed it and said, “Now you can learn to drive.” Many of you may remember doing donut skids in the snow in a parking lot. We went out on an unfinished but fully paved 4 lane highway in dry weather and I learned to panic stop with locked up brakes from 60mph to dead stop without going off the pavement. There were no antilock brake systems back in the early 60’s.
Dad said, “Parallel parking is fine but it won’t save your life.” I used that training once or twice. 

 

CJ

[Finagler 6853 Life]

In our area, only the kids who live in the rural areas can ride the bus.  If your school, high school, middle school and intermediate school is where your kid goes and it is across town from where you live, you either walk, ride a bike or get a ride.  The high school and middle school are across town from each other.  Approximately 5 miles.  The intermediate school and elementary schools are scattered around the community.  When those were built, they were on the edges of town. Now everything has grown up around them.  The high school and middle school are still on the edges of town.  If you live near one of the schools and they are dropping off kids from the country at a school near to you then going on to the school your child attends, your child can not get a ride across town to their school on the school bus.  Not allowed unless there is some special circumstance for your child.  The only one I can think of is where one kid got to ride the bus from the Junior high to the Senior high on the bus as he was on the varsity team and had to practice with them.  Otherwise, you were left up to your own means.  The newer schools here are designed with traffic ways to accommodate kids being picked up and dropped off.  And don't you dare deviate from it.  Some citizen traffic control person in and orange vest will give you what for.  Did you ever tell someone to stick their yellow flag up their,,,,,,, nose and to get out of the way?  They don't react well.

[Singin' Sue 71615]

Lack of bus drivers is a big thing.

But...

Schools, mostly after Covid , have parents drive in a one lane line topick up kids! 

Where once a parent pulled into the parkinglot to het their child, there is now ONE line and a barricaded route...

The amount of hatefulness and violence that happens on busses and in schools makes me hapoy my daughter is homeschooling, and our other grands are able to go to Christian school!!

[Grumpy Old Man]

When my granddaughter started Kindergarten, she didn't want to ride the bus, so I would take her to school. Her other grandparents lived across from the school, so I parked in their drive and walked her across the street. For pu, I parked and went up and stood in line. Grandson rode the bus from the get go. 2 routes. 1 for middle school and 1 for K-4.

I rode the bus till grade 9. Then I figured I could get more done and I ran 2 1/2 miles to school. We were 1st on bus, so I could leave after bus and still get to school before the bus.

[SilverLocks]

There’s an elephant in the room that is hard to ignore. It has become the norm in our culture. Some parents have the attitude of my kid is not going to be brought up like me. My little one needs to have a childhood where they are able to make their own choices and I will allow them to do that. You know they are only kids once. They can learn the hard things when they are grown. I am here to make sure they are happy all the time. 
 

I can’t wait to see how this will work out. I hope I am nothing but ash when that occurs. 

[Sgt. C.J. Sabre, SASS #46770]

46 minutes ago, SilverLocks said:

My little one needs to have a childhood where they are able to make their own choices and I will allow them to do that. You know they are only kids once. 

It's more like "I'm busy and don't want to be bothered with the little brats". Or was that more of a Gen X thing?

Edited Friday at 12:56 PM by Sgt. C.J. Sabre, SASS #46770

[watab kid]

14 hours ago, SilverLocks said:

There’s an elephant in the room that is hard to ignore. It has become the norm in our culture. Some parents have the attitude of my kid is not going to be brought up like me. My little one needs to have a childhood where they are able to make their own choices and I will allow them to do that. You know they are only kids once. They can learn the hard things when they are grown. I am here to make sure they are happy all the time. 
 

I can’t wait to see how this will work out. I hope I am nothing but ash when that occurs. 

im with you , i hope im long gone by the time they face the really hard stuff in life but i hope i and their parents have given them the intelligence and tools to make good choices when these things present themselves as we all know they will , its life we all live it , we all face the same things maybe at different times but it happens like it or not , cant be prevented hopefully its been prepared for with education , 

 

riding the bus was an educational experience in life skills , not all pleasant but some were , couple romantic things happened that ill always treasure , cant take that way from me