School Bus Best Way for Kids to Ride to School?

Traffic issues? The parking lot and driveway into my daughter's school is a traffic jam from all the cars/SUVS/minivans. The school buses have a hard time getting in to unload and back out.

My daughter loves riding the bus. She gets to socialize and have "free time" with her friends.

Transportation can be a big piece of the school budget, also. If parents sporadically use the buses, how can a school justify that expense? Pretty soon, they may have to decide to eliminate buses for kids who live "close enough" to school, then you won't have the option.

Part of it is socialization, the kids can play and goof before they get to school so they focus a bit better. The other thing is if every parent drove their kids to school can you imagine the traffic nightmare that would make.

You are more likely to get in an accident driving your child to school than your child is riding the bus. It's based on true statistics. Do you have to take a driving test every year? No. Do you have to take defensive driving and safety classes every year? No. School bus drivers do. I've done a TON of research on this subject, and was floored by what bus drivers go through. I will never again question a bus driver... I admire them. Of course, like anything else, there's always one or two bad apples in the bunch that hit the news, but your child is much, MUCH safer on the bus. I admire the great jobs they do!

Now, GRTC bus drivers, that's something different here in Richmond. Our local free newspaper has an entire column dedicated to the follies of GRTC drivers... if you need a laugh, wait until winter hits and google it ;)

ETA: Good for you Christy P for letting your child walk to school! That's even better!

School busses do not have many accidents. Putting 30 kids on a bus takes 30 cars off the road, thus reducing the accident rate on a snowy/rainy road.
Our school's stress that we stay off the road and let the busses take the children to school. We have many backroads and with 24000 children who ride busses, it is safer for all involved.

Our highschools especially stress this in the winter. In previous years we have had many children die because of road conditions they were not able to handle. One year we lost 7 kids between 3 high schools, because of bad road conditions. But none of our busses were in any accidents.

In NC we lived within a mile from the elementary school. I didn't mind taking the kids to school. But it was again stressed that HSers' ride the bus.

It's their opinion. And it probably keeps the parental vehicle backup to a minimum.

My boys walk to school and I am thankful for it. Even if they could ride the bus (we live too close), I'd still have them walk (as long as it were feasible) because it helps them to burn off a little excess energy before they get to school. It's good for them.

Depends on your school/the area you live in.
IMO, the principal just wants more control. Kids on the bus are on time and don't clog up the parking lot.
I drive my daughter because we're about a mile from the school, but the bus comes 50 minutes before school starts!

To avoid the Zoo before school starts! For the school it is the best way. Infact it is the safer way...for the most part since there is less commotion. Less cars, less people easier morning.

If you enjoy the morning with your kids then do it...

Our school does not allow ANY elementary students to walk to school. Even if they live across the street.
Buses are probably easier logistically for the school handling the student traffic coming into the school.
But we do have the option of dropping our kids off.
There is a separate curb drop off area away from the bus traffic.

Parents at our school do it to allow extra sleep for the kids. It is proven that kids are not getting enough sleep and some schools start real early. Also if your child gets on the bus one hour before school starts and you live ten minutes from school(like our kids do) it allows kids more sleep too. One of my kids always got sick on the bus because it was hard to control the temperature of the bus in extreme weather so ended up driving her everyday.

My kids have always ridden the bus with the exception of preschool. It's only now that my eldest is in 6th grade (middle school) that we're driving her and picking her up. The bus stop is too far from the house and her bully from the past two years (a very seriously disturbed girl who bullies everyone but especially my daughter) is at the same bus stop and rides the same bus. I refuse to subject my daughter to that since the department of transportation can't change her bus (and I wouldn't expect them to, esp since it's the only one in our area).

So for now we drive her and I don't mind so much. When she starts soccer I'll just pick her up later from school or she can take the late bus home.

As for your situation, I'm sure it has to do with socialization and independence as well as giving the kids time to transition from home state of mind to school state of mind and back again on the way home.

It helps with socialization, independence and it is also safer. I have a twin boys and one has special needs (deaf/hard of hearing) and I feel better knowing that he isn't crossing the parking lot every morning/afternoon to get in to the car. When the bus gets to school they are let off at the door. My kids love riding the bus because they are getting to do something with out the help of mommy.

It is alot safer for your child to ride the bus then in a car. Cars have more accidents then buses. I am a bus driver and I feel alot safer in the bus then I do in my own car. Besides that at my school there are so many parents dropping off their kids that it takes me forever to get to the curb to drop them off. Especially the high school cause the parents don't go to the designated spot and they block the bus entrance. Sometimes I am sitting out in the road waiting to pull in.
But think about this.... if a car or truck hits a bus head on, how much damage do you think the bus with have or fatalities for that matter. You get hit head on in car and you are in serious trouble.

I did the same thing when my son was in away-school. I would NOT have let my son ride the bus in the morning, because pickup was well over an hour before we'd have to leave if we drove.

The school preferred kids to be on the bus TO school because
- If a kid wasn't there, they weren't late, they were sick
- Parents tended to be REALLY cranky during morning drop off in the traffic circle (about half did the circle and half did what I did, which was park and walk i)
- The parking circle was still often "going" 5-10 minutes after the last bell (aka a lot of the kids who were there in plenty of time were still in their cars in the circle waiting for the drop off point AND the other kids who were waiting for escort to class were still there, because the teachers had to wait for all the kids who were stuck in 'purgatory' in the circle. Aka the day started late every time the circle got backed up).
- The school got money for the number of kids who rode the bus. If they only rode it half the time, the school got half the money.

((The school tried *requiring* that the bus be used in both directions -if at all-, but dropped the policy halfway through the year. They instituted it to try and increase the money they got, but they ended up losing 2/3s of their bus riders in the process. Meaning they started losing money hand over fist. They got a real 'glass is half full' instead of 'half empty' attitude about halftime riders after that one!))

My guess would be that if EVERYONE drove their kids it would be an impossible situation to enter the lot, drop off safely, an dget the kids to their classroom. Much as with adults, carpooling is better for a lot of reasons. Think of how crowded open house nights are!!!

Buses also get the kids to school on time. Can you imagine how many parents get their kids to school late because they live on their own schedule? At least if you commit to meeting the bus, you are more likely to do it then when you are just worried about your own timeline.

I aslo think riding the school bus is safer, but that is total opinion and I don't have stats to back it up. The buses are high up, large, and slow. School bus accidents are rare. Mom, in a 5 year old car low to the ground, distracted on a cell phone, with a coffee, yelling at her kids, is far more dangerous. I'm sure you are a great driver :) but many parents aren't and if I were a principle, I would want as many adults and their cars away from my school as possible.

By all means, keep doing what works for you, but I suspect those are his reasons. I like the bus, because I hate driving in the school parking lot where there are people walking and parents cutting in the carpool line. I like to tell my kids we are being environmentally friendly for not driving our SUV on such a short trip. And we enjoy the walk together and hanging out in the morning without the stress loading into the car and driving. Although, I don't like those zero degree mornings in January..

My guess is its safer and gets the kids to school on time. If a bus gets into an accident chances are your kids won't get hurt because its a big hunk of metal. You have a better chance of getting into an accident than the bus. The bus drops the kids off at the doors so its safer. MYsons school has a separate area for carpool. It probably cuts back on the amount of traffic of carpoolers. kids can socialize too.
I let my son ride the bus. He loves riding the bus. He does get on 45 minutes before school starts though. AFter school he goes to the sitters which is only 10 minutes away.

First, it's a safety issue. If more kids would ride the buses then there would be less traffic, less cars and crazy people not watching for kids, etc. At one school we went to I saw parents fly in and out of the parking lots totally ignoring that the chldren and buses had the right of way. The principal might be concerned about safety (altho, so few really are!); it could be they'll lose their transportation budget if kids don't ride the buses. That's how it was with our school. But then money was ALL that school was worried about! Personally, I would let them ride the bus because of the safety issue. Usually buses pull up close to the doors/sidewalks and the kids don't have to worry about being hit by cars. Plus, when they're little it's fun! Good luck!!

I know the school my daughter goes to, traffic is a nightmare. There is one main entrance and it's a k-3 school. Even with a lot of kids riding the buses cars start lining up at 230 and school isn't even out till 320. I've waited over 20 minutes to pick my daughter up. It's a lot less for the school to worry about if your kids ride a bus, and less risk of an accident on or around school property.

On a whim, those of you that always take your kiddos to school, please note the usual traffic for those days/times -- then, on a day that there is NO school (in-service or such), do that same drive and see the difference in vehicles on the roads during those times! (yeah, a pain if you don't have to go, but it's the only way you'll notice this)

Around here it is amazing the difference in traffic! And I really want to know why there will be vehicles in line to drop kiddos off at school more than 30 minutes BEFORE they can be allowed in the bldg??? Will somebody explain that one??

Little one here did ride the morning bus last year. This year, she preferred to do before and after school with the "Y" - which works for me and her as it got my hours back to regualr hours. (dropping her in the morning is where I notice the car rider line -- way too early!)

I have thoughts on both sides of the fence. But because we live out in the country and the bus picks them up at the end of our driveway, I like that option better than making my hubby get my son ready each morning. If it worked out for me to drop her off on the way to work, I would. But with my schedule, it doesn't work out.

Well i love that my daughter rides the bus, she can talk to her friends, bus stops are fun! plus a bus is more efficient. Those lines for kid pick up and drop off are a joke!.

Buses are the ultimate carpool, better for your finances, your time (which lets face it as already precious enough), the earth...etc

I plan on putting all my kids on the bus until the day they can drive themselves or ride with a friend