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Article #447

Re: Getting kids to school

#447
From: Michael Peirce
Date: Fri, 05 Jun 1992 21:54
47 lines
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In article <1992Jun5.170717.15144@adobe.com> (ca.environment,ba.transportation), jciccare@adobe.com (John Ciccarelli) writes:
> Michael Pierce writes:
>  >Bikes also don't work so well when you have to tote kids around and drop
>  >them off at day care of school (specifically small children).
> 
> Anne Paulson responds:
>  In fact, for people who are used to using bikes as transport, bikes
>  work just fine for transporting little kids.  You can use a seat on
>  the back of the bike if you have one kid and s/he's small, but most
>  serious bicyclists opt for trailers.
> 
> Adrian Brandt follows up:
> >Gee, when I was a kid I was riding a bike to school (along with tons of
> >other kids) by fourth grade.  Before fourth grade I went to a different
> >school that was closer and I remember walking to school starting in
> >Kindergarten and continuing through third grade when I switched schools.
> >I never did see why some parents insisted on chauferring their kids to
> >school all the way through eighth grade.  I grew up in an area that was
> >(and still is) quite bike and pedestrian friendly (Menlo Park).
> 
> If you want to see the potential for bikes eliminating short auto trips
> of the "mom-'n'-dad's taxi" variety, stand at the corner of Middlefield
> and North California in Palo Alto between 7:30 and 8:15 any school
> morning.  There are literally hundreds of middle-schoolers on their way
> to Jordan School -- on bikes.  Almost without exception they're riding
> on the right side of the street and maneuvering correctly.  Many, if not 
> most, are wearing helmets.  As you witness this organized flood of people 
> power, think about how many cars would clog the streets around you if 
> these kids weren't on bikes.  Then ask yourself why you can't bike to work.

Great.  But in my original comment I wasn't talking about middle school
aged kids.  They aren't "small children" they are (mostly) responsible
for their own transport either by foot or by bike.  My step daughter
bikes or walks to middle school most days.  Schools are mostly nearby
and walking work great when its only a few blocks.

But my step son doesn't.  He's too young (and disabled too, but that's
a different argument) and we drive him to his day care each day. 
It's a number of miles away and somehow I just can't imagine taking
three buses each way with him or biking with him in a trailer.

--  Michael Peirce      --   peirce@outpost.SF-Bay.org
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From: peirce@outpost.SF-Bay.org (Michael Peirce)
Newsgroups: ca.environment,ba.transportation
Subject: Re: Getting kids to school
Message-ID: <D2150035.5a8jqi@outpost.SF-Bay.org>
Date: 5 Jun 92 21:54:02 GMT
Reply-To: peirce@outpost.SF-Bay.org (Michael Peirce)
Distribution: ca
Organization: Peirce Software
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