Do FCPS parents oppose the walk radius for schools?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think a .8 mile walk is reasonable in elementary school.

I think it is very reasonable, but without sidewalks it isn't safe.

For a 1st grader? Alone?

I am the OP, and I would NEVER let my child walk from my house to school alone. Maybe in 4th or 5th, but I'm not sure even then.

EVEN THE SCHOOL says I should not let my child walk alone. So is it really reasonable for me to spend 2 hours a day (1 hr round trip 2x a day) walking her to/from school. Obviously I think not.

. It takes you an hour to walk less than a ,lie? Honey, you and your child need that exercise. Something is very wrong.

[Anonymous]

Did they change the rules? I read it was 1.0 miles for ES, and 1.5 miles for HS. Then the fine print says that this distance is "to the bus stop" not to the school. So no service in our neighborhood with literally 100s of children. They are all being driven. Parents are not letting their 8 years old walk in the dark -- huge back up in front of the schools..

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:By the looks of some of the tubby parents I see in the suburbs, they should be walking their kids longer distances.

Obesity rates are higher in DC. DC suburbs are some of the healthiest jurisdictions in the US.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:These days, all children should be bused for safety reasons. good Lord - a violent child rapist lives right in front of the elementary school in our neighborhood. And autistic kids go there and other special needs children - god forbid they have to walk home past his house alone.

OP here. I agree with this (obviously.) So many of the buses at our school pull into the loop 1/2 empty, and drive right by my street on the way. Would it be so hard to make a few extra stops? I also think its in the interest of equity. If its the parents responsibility to get their kids to school, then it should be for ALL parents. If its the schools responsibility (buses) then it should be for all.

So based on your logic, a kid who lives across the street from the school should have a bus available to to take the child to school.

In Japan, 5 year olds go to school without adult accompaniment on subways. How does this happen? The community is invested in the safety of all children. Perhaps this is where you need to put your energy. You have decided that the walk to your child's school isn't safe, even though there are sidewalks the entire way. You claim the cars go too fast. I'm not sure what this "tunnel" you refer to is all about. Instead of making the school system cater to you, what are you doing to organize parents in your neighborhood to take turns walking with the kids to school. Or work with VDOT for traffic calming measures.

I am Japanese and have lived in Japan.

Japan is a very, very different society from the US and very, very monolithic. You cannot compare the experience of Japanese schoolchildren to the experience of American schoolchildren.

The countries are just too different.

OMG! Thank you. My DH grew up in Japan and is always saying our young girls should walk. Check out the convicted sex offender map. More tan one live right next to the schools.

[Anonymous]

So glad we picked a house in a neighborhood where walking to all 3 schools is fairly easy. I honestly think a lot of people are lazy not walking their kids/allowing their kids to walk in our neighborhood.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't know of anyone who complains about it. I think the radius is one mile for us in ES.

Yes, this is correct as long as there are sidewalks and no heavily traveled roads to cross without a crossing guard.

Not true for FCPS. We live just under a mile from school. Need to cross a several streets, one of them pretty busy and doesn't have a stop sign and no crossing guard. No sidewalks on 2 of the 4 streets. I actually contacted the transportation official and was told not having sidewalks was not a reason for bussing. There are lots of cars parked on the sides of the roads in my neighborhood, my kids would have to walk in the road to school.

[Anonymous]

The issue in FCPS is sidewalks for any kind of safe walking. Fairfax County is huge, and not exactly known for spending its money wisely. Sidewalks should be a priority, but too many old people run the county.

[Anonymous]

PP here, meant to add, commons sense is completely unheard of.