DervMan wrote:
It doesn't clog up the infrastructure any more than any other commuter
journey and if walking to school is the only exercise kids get then that is
just bad parenting.

People who complain about the school runs away seem to be in "it's somebody
else's fault" camp.

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"AndrewR" <andrew (AT) rockface (DOT) freeserve.co.uk> wrote

Except, when school's out for the summer, the regular commute to and from
work takes less time. And trying to get into most cities around the 15:00
to 15:30 during term time is *not* easy.

Perhaps. Or bad schooling. Either way.

Or like me they don't have kids.

I don't think that the school run per se is evil sin kills puppies etc., but
the concept of deliberately making a trip twice a day just to take / drop
off the kids without due consideration for sharing rides / bus / whatever is
wasteful.

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DervMan wrote:
School holiday times are a combination of no school run, but also people
taking time off work to look after their children or spend time with them,
so you're not seeing just the effect of nobody doing a school run.

Allowing your children to slouch round all of the time watching TV or
playing computer games or whatever is bad parenting, especially as if you
put two or more kids together and give them some outdoors they'll happily
exercise themselves until they're fit to drop.

My daughter is 6 and we live slightly over 1.5 miles from her school. The
route covers several roads that are too busy for a child of her age to cross
unsupervised. There is no bus service from near our house that would take
her anywhere near her school

I'm lucky in that my job is flexible enough about my start time that I can
frequently make the time to walk her to school, but there are also times
when I have to be in the office before 9:30 or the weather is too lousy for
either of us to want to walk.

Other parents, I know, don't have the luxury of being able to wander into
the office when they feel like it. They are already pushing their deadlines
managing to get their kids dropped off at school for 8:30 (the earliest kids
at my daughter's school can be dropped) and then make it to work for 9. If
you throw in a walk as well, even just a 10 minute one, the situation
becomes impossible.

I'd like to think that something could be done to make the school run
easier, but I certainly don't think it is fair to complain about somebody
using their car to get their kids to school, especially when the reason most
people complain is that it gets in the way of them using their car to go to
work.

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"AndrewR" <andrew (AT) rockface (DOT) freeserve.co.uk> wrote

Yes, absolutely. I agree. But you're seeing no school run and some
commuter traffic.

And I'd agree here as well.

Now I can't understand because I'm not a parent. One day I hope to be and I
hope to understand...

Both grand. Unfortunately some people won't bother to do the research to
see if a bus is walking is an alternative solution, if you see what I mean.

It's the same story with people who drive the three miles to work and who
leave at 08:41 because it takes 19 minutes to drive the distance, park, pay
and walk to the office. I take the mickey out of these people something
rotten because as soon as the weather turns slightly foul they're habitually
late in.



Yes. And in this respect it's good that there are changes to employment law
such that employers must consider flexible working arrangements to be family
friendly...

....but sometimes it does feel a little bit unfair.

You mean we should all follow what the Government suggest and use the car
when it's quiet out!? :-)

Oh c'mon, the British love to complain and be too lazy to do anything about
it.

Yes. I didn't put my argument well. My complaint is lazy gits too
ignorant or stupid to consider anything other than choking up the
infrastructure. Unfortunately the stereotype image of a Ford Galaxy, double
parking and letting their one kiddie out to go to school, then repeating at
three fifteen, it's all too commonly seen during my commuter routes various.

Fortunately I am able to drive during less busy times. I'm more often
caught in the school rush when I am going from the office to a meeting, type
thing. Fortunately I can use the train for the most part.

--
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www.dervman.com

In news:45edbb07$0$32026$fa0fcedb (AT) news (DOT) zen.co.uk,
DervMan <thedervman (AT) gmail (DOT) com> wittered on forthwith;
I live opposite three schools, and down the road from another two.

Lots more people doing the "school run", lots more fat kids. It could be
coincidence, but I doubt it.

Because of the two, large, senior schools opposite my house I have traffic
problems I didn't have 10 years ago - and the schools have been there for
100 years or so. There used to be around 5 or 6 cars in my (side) road every
afternoon that were parents on the "school run", now there are at least 60,
which is ridiculous. The main road is utterly blocked on both sides, the
grass verges are all chewed up, the bus lane they put in outside the schools
is full of parents' cars, the buses are mainly empty and the place is
utterly littered with fat kids waiting for their parents. It is utterly
impossible for me to get a car out of my driveway because there are always
at least two cars left unnattended by parents for 10-15 minutes.. This is in
an "access only" sideroad - which has no schools.

The schools have changed their hours in an attempt to cause less chaos - one
now lets out at 3, the other at 3.30, but there are so many parents cars the
traffic is now fouled up until 4.15 every afternoon.

The rest of the day the main road flows perfectly.... although the council
have decided to recently install speed bumps just to add to the chaos.


--
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Currently listening to "The Dead Class - Boo"

DervMan wrote:
I've got a dilemma there, you see. If I walk my daughter to school and back
I get home about 9am, which means that I can drive into the office and not
be unacceptably late, but I have to clog up the 10 miles of road between my
home and the office.

I can cycle into the office, doing my bit to reduce commuter congestion, but
that means I have to leave earlier, which means leaving my wife to do the
school run and she hates walking there and back by herself, so she'll take
the car.

If I walked my daughter to school and then cycled in work would probably
feel I was taking the piss, especially if I did it regularly.

So, which way to jump?


I work with (not for) the civil service, who extend flexi-hours to all of
their staff, parents and childless alike. I'm surprised that more companies
haven't the courage to do this, as it seems to be a system which works very
well.

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