Children Catching the Bus

nfollows1982

Hi all,

I just wanted to ask the opinion as to how old your kids were or will be before you considered it ok for them to use public transport rather than relying on lifts?

I'm not talking about on a regular basis, perhaps once a fortnight, and they would be seen on and met off the bus at either end. The journey will last approx 40 mins travelling between 5 and 6pm on a Saturday.

This is for an 11 soon to be 12 year old boy.

Thanks

fluffnutter

It always depends on the kid, but I'd be perfectly OK with this.

thorsoak

At 11 and 12, I would think that it is the perfect time to start building their confidence.

Mojisola

Depends a lot on the area and how street-wise the child is but, by 12, he should be learning to be independent.

JimmyTheWig

I would want to do the journey with them the first couple of times.
Maybe:
1st time go together, with the grown up taking the lead and pointing out relevant things to the child.
2nd time go together, with the child taking the lead, telling the grown up when to get off, etc.
3rd time with the grown up on the same bus but not sitting together - just be there in the background if needed.
4th time they can go on their own.

If they struggle with any of the steps then you can go back a step or stay on that step until ready to progress.

Obviously, as has been said above, it depends on the child.

Mojisola

JimmyTheWig wrote: »

I would want to do the journey with them the first couple of times.
Maybe:
1st time go together, with the grown up taking the lead and pointing out relevant things to the child.
2nd time go together, with the child taking the lead, telling the grown up when to get off, etc.
3rd time with the grown up on the same bus but not sitting together - just be there in the background if needed.
4th time they can go on their own.

If they struggle with any of the steps then you can go back a step or stay on that step until ready to progress.

Obviously, as has been said above, it depends on the child.

All very good advice.

I wouldn't just send a child off on a bus who had never travelled on public transport before. Despite being 11/12, it's probably worth going over the subject of how to deal with strangers who start to talk to you - or worse.

loracan1

It's the age many children start catching a bus to school, if they can handle that a normal bus should be easy!

As long as they're aware of their route and times [STRIKE]and have a back up plan if they catch the wrong bus[/STRIKE] - shouldn't be a problem.

LandyAndy

My sons started to catch the bus to Bournemouth (15 miles) and Salisbury (12 miles) on their own at about 12/13. They never had any difficulties. They both had friends who still weren't being allowed to make those journeys alone at 15.

nfollows1982

Thanks for the advice.

It's a route he will have travelled plenty of times with his mum, although I'm not sure if he's ever done it on his own.

It's something that I have to approach his mum with as a compromise and I didn't want to suggest if it she's likely to deem it totally unnacceptable.

geekgirl

LandyAndy wrote: »

My sons started to catch the bus to Bournemouth (15 miles) and Salisbury (12 miles) on their own at about 12/13. They never had any difficulties. They both had friends who still weren't being allowed to make those journeys alone at 15.

Wow! How do you help your kids be independent if you don't allow them to do these things!
When my son was 15 he got the chance to do his work experience at a design studio in Soho. I was really worried but his dad did the journey on the train (hour train journey, then short tube journey) the first few times then he had 3 weeks of going on his own. It really did boost his confidence and his independence no end. My nails were chewed down to the quick!

My daughter was allowed to go on a short bus journey with a friend aged 12, both sensible girls who would know what to do if there was a problem.

phill99

Mojisola wrote: »

All very good advice.

I wouldn't just send a child off on a bus who had never travelled on public transport before. Despite being 11/12, it's probably worth going over the subject of how to deal with strangers who start to talk to you - or worse.

I think you need to wise up on this if you are worried about the "or worse" scenario, then you need to realise that 90% of children that are molested are molested by someone they know.

It's actually the person putting them on the bus and meeting them at the other end that you should be worrying about.