Unnecessary congestion

The clogging of areas around schools by parents' cars is happening for 3 main reasons

Laziness  / Downright Laziness / Selfishness

The parents and their children would all benefit from using their legs and walking.   

No reason why those with a few miles journey distance don't leave their cars in the local municiple car park and walk the rest of the way.

Good for the kids and good for the parents AND would improve road safety at the school gates. 

K 

 

Please do not tar all parents with that brush. See my earlier post, my Sons and DIL's are none of the above and I take great exception in them being called that. They are very hardworking and loving parents, none of them are lazy or fat  as they get plenty of exercise. They too are frustrated by lack of parking near schools, they don't want their children run over or be the cause of someone elses child to be run over. Where possible they do park away from the school but even that can be difficult at times. They would love for their children to go on a school bus but the councils don't run them from their area to the schools they have to attend.

 Tammy  In your case its the Majority who by their actions, give a bad name to the minority who have a ligitimate need,where as normally its the other way round

 Tammy  In your case its the Majority who by their actions, give a bad name to the minority who have a ligitimate need,where as normally its the other way round

Well thank you for that but I'm not so sure, there are many parents that are in the same boat as mine. As towns and villages get bigger and bigger then so must the schools, but it would seem that is not the case. Schools are not getting bigger because there are some that still have capacity for pupils so until all these are full the powers that be seem very reluctant to expand, which means there are areas where children have to travel miles to school at parents expense, if the council was to provide transport then that would cut down the number of cars at the gates.  By the way how do you all know that the cars belong to parents we live within say a mile of the school? that's a distance I would say most infants should be able to walk IF it is safe to do so, ie pavements.

Tammy if all parents dropped their children off at a safe place 1/2 mile from the school, and let them walk from there, it would be much safer than currently dropping them off at the gates. Everyone thinking the only safe option is to drop their off spring at the gate causes major safety issues due to the congestion caused. When on gate duty at the school I worked I never stopped being amazed by the downright dangerous things parents would do including, driving and parking on the pavement and parking in neighbouring driveways then reversing out onto the main flow. 

Tammy, one of the problems with the school in our village is that it is considered to be a good school and parents apply to get their children in, the population of the village is approx 1200 people so not a big village and I would say that 75% of people haven't got children. The parking stretches for approx 1/4 of a mile, there isn't a shop in the village and after 0900 the street clears, and you can then get two cars by one another. What would be good is a car park near to the school so parents could park there and then walk,thus creating less obstruction and safer for the children. There was a field behind the school which as just had some affordable housing built there, but that would have been ideal for a car park and a footpath built to access the school from the back,that would have been totally safe the children not even going on a road. If the county planning had have been concerned or even the parish council it could have saved a lot of bother. There is a road which is dead end with a footpath through to the school gates but do parents use their common sense and park on there, no, they would sooner park next to the school gates and create problems.

We live on the outskirts of a Garden City,there are nine schools , primary 7 comp 2 private 1,within 3mls and a good school and service buses to most,but as our local councilors state,as they have done surveys,the majority of parents questioned said the times of any other form of transport,including "walking buses" is not compatable with their timetables for the school trip, or in other words its easier,and quicker to get the car 

Ta my, you know Worksop, I walked from concrete city to StMarys from the age of 10 didn't walk everyday caught the bus some days but I like the other kids that walked with me would sooner have walked than catch the buss. My parents were both working and couldn't take us to school much the same as most parents that lived in the vicinity. Please don't think I am getting at you or your family I'm not just outlining what we used to do.

MD, did that make you what was called a 'latchkey' kid?

Ta my, you know Worksop, I walked from concrete city to StMarys from the age of 10 didn't walk everyday caught the bus some days but I like the other kids that walked with me would sooner have walked than catch the buss. My parents were both working and couldn't take us to school much the same as most parents that lived in the vicinity. Please don't think I am getting at you or your family I'm not just outlining what we used to do.

Yes I know and I used to walk from Hamilton Street to Crown street, but that was then, roads are busier, parents work etc. you said from the age of 10, I'm talking about infants/juniors 4 - 10 I don't think anyone would expect these to walk miles. 1 set of my grankids live in Tidworth their school is in Collingbourne Ducis its 15 mins drive on country roads that I don't even like driving, as i've said if the parents could get kids into local schools then the need for cars would be less.

There was a field behind the school which as just had some affordable housing built there, but that would have been ideal for a car park and a footpath built to access the school from the back,that would have been totally safe the children not even going on a road. If the county planning had have been concerned or even the parish council it could have saved a lot of bother.

This is what I'm saying the powers that be are causing the problems by not adressing them, provide a safe place to park, provide buses, provide spaces at local schools its not rocket science. Some schools have breakfast clubs so parents can drop the kids off before going to work, some provide after school clubs, these help spread the congestion, some schools have earlier starting times (DIL works in one that starts at 8.30 its difficult for parents when children go to differant schools but have to be picked up within minutes of each other. 

I know it is perceived that ALL parents are useless waste of space these days but they are not, they are all working hard to provide a better life for their children just as we did, but I believe they have a harder time now then ever we did. 

If people want to address these issues get together, join a group in your village/town and have a bigger voice, its the only way, don't come on here moaning about it because this forum won't be of any use solving the issues.