some PTA types please help me out here (what happened to school busses)

[crikkett]

So an elementary school opened near me and for crying out loud my quiet little street that doesn't even have a sidewalk is a highway!

What happened to school busses? They have to be more efficient to run than 1,000 SUV's.

[Deep13]

1. The "near me" part suggests...

...that the school expected the children to walk to school.

[crikkett]

7. They did expect kids to walk

when it was built in the 40s. The school was closed for 2 years, for remuddling. What a horrible job they did too. Stucco (Yuccko!)everywhere, and sharp rooflines and poles sticking out and exposed a/c units ...

[LeftyMom]

2. Not a PTA type here (my kid's homeschooled) but

many school districts have cut back or eliminated bus service, or started charging money for it. Some parents may also dislike the idea of the child waiting at and walking home from the bus stop without supervision, or be unimpressed with the school's ability to maintain order on the bus. Some parents may also think that their car is safer than the school bus, but this is not true most of the time.

edit: As the weather clears up some of those kids might be taking the bus or walking, but riding to school in cars in the winter to keep them warm and dry.

[uberotto]

3. Here, you have to live more than 3 miles away from the school...

before you are in the School Bus zone. I guess that the school boards are still living in the dark ages, back when parents used to let their children walk or ride their bikes to school. Now days, if I child is traveling any farther than the end of the street, parents pack them into the SUV and drive them to their destination.

And still, we ask ourselves, why are our children getting so fat?

[fasttense]

4. I moved because of it.

I use to live near a high school and moved because the traffic was just awful. I thought it would be good for my kids to be able to walk to school. But they risked their lives if they walked and I made them drive the two blocks. Now we are in a nicer neighborhood, away from the school. One high school here has a trucker business right across the street. The traffic is always awful and there have been several fatal accidents nearby.

When I was in high school the nicer neighborhoods were near the school. I'm not sure when that changed.

[Kerrytravelers]

5. The district I live in (and use to work in) has cut most busing,

Special Education services, sports and field trips still get busses, although the number of field trips are very limited each year. One has to live either 3 or 4 miles to receive bus privileges, and then pay for them, unless you qualify for a free lunch, then you get your bus ride free, too.

Many kids are now taking the city bus. A pass costs them $50 a month.

Now, our district also closed down 5 schools this year. And, imagine that, they were all in the minority neighborhoods. The schools that were full to capacity. And the school that weren't full? The ones in the "white" neighborhoods? Oh, they stayed open.

Don't even get me started. Lawsuits are abounding.

My school district covers two other cities as well as the one I live in. One is making the legal maneuvers to separate themselves and the other is making the legal maneuvers to join another school district. I have a bet out that within 5 years, the district completely falls apart and the state takes over.

And guess where all the wealthy children are? Not in our local public schools. And the poor? Who cares about them, right?

And I live in a very very very liberal area of Los Angeles. Not at all conservative.

Can you imagine?

[crikkett]

6. I can imagine!

I volunteered for a commission in my N. California town to study traffic and parking problems. I just started, so I've got a lot of catching up to do.

(And I didn't volunteer because the school opened up, but because I wanted to improve bus service in town.)