School Runs

As the summer holidays end, there is an increase in traffic as parents take their children to school.

Now, I was of the opinion that a lot of these extra cars on the road were unnecessary as they are as a result of parents mollycoddling their offspring.

However, having given it a bit of thought I have partly revised my attitude.

The problem is basically down to a number of factors.

First, parents cannot, or choose not to, send their kids to the nearest school. This is either because the school is crap, or it is over-subscribed. This means that other learning establishments have to be found further afield.

Second, public transport is not always the best suited to get the little kiddies to school. Reading Buses run an excellent service, but if the school is out in the sticks, then you would be out of luck. Of course, buses are not suitable for primary school age children.

There are some schools that run a school bus service, but that costs, and the extra expenditure may not be worthwhile.

Ideally councils maybe ought to consider running school buses as they do in America, but these days money is tight and they would rather keep their outreach programs going rather than catering for the needs of the majority. 

This leaves private transport. It is well known that Britain’s roads, especially in urban areas cannot cope with the increase in private transport. This is compounded by developers building umpteen numbers of flats on small square-footage to make a fast buck and to accommodate a growing population.

So, what’s the solution? 

Maybe schools ought to look at their opening times. Either start and finish later, avoiding the traditional rush hour traffic, or similarly start and finish earlier for the same reason. Of course this would have to tie in with the parents’ working schedule.

Would it be reasonable for Education Authorities to possibly fund a kind of park-and –ride system? Parents could drop the kiddiewinks at specific points and buses could wing them away to their places of learning...

There is a lot to be said for allowing children to make their own way to school. It shows trust and teaches them road sense. It also allows them to be with their friends outside the school environment...