Child catching a bus - what not to forget.

rachbc

DS did exactly the ame the first time he had to get a bus by himself.

When he was tiny we were getting a bus that I hadn't used before but he had the previous week. I said to him 'Is this the bus sop you and daddy waited at last week' 'Yes' he replied. 10 mins later despite putting our arms out the (hourly) bus sailed past us and stopped at the stopped just round the corner. 'It did that last week too and daddy and I had to walk to that bus stop to catch the next one'. Seems I should have ask 'Is the the bus stop you /caught/ the bus at last week?'!!

mgdavid

hardpressed wrote: »

As someone who very very rarely uses a bus, I would expect if I was standing at a bus stop that the bus would stop. I don't think my children who only ever travelled on a school bus would know that either.

even if the bus stop sign had the word 'REQUEST' on it?

xbrenx

rachbc wrote: »

DS did exactly the ame the first time he had to get a bus by himself.

When he was tiny we were getting a bus that I hadn't used before but he had the previous week. I said to him 'Is this the bus sop you and daddy waited at last week' 'Yes' he replied. 10 mins later despite putting our arms out the (hourly) bus sailed past us and stopped at the stopped just round the corner. 'It did that last week too and daddy and I had to walk to that bus stop to catch the next one'. Seems I should have ask 'Is the the bus stop you /caught/ the bus at last week?'!!

fluffnutter wrote: »

My OH managed to miss a train despite being sat on the platform for 10 minutes before it came. When it turned up he wandered up and down idly looking for a seat, the doors closed and off it went. What a wally.

These both made me :rotfl:

iammumtoone

I would have missed the bus too. I have NEVER had to put my hand out for a bus to stop, it would never occur for me to do so. I travel a bit by bus in my town but have also occasionally used buses when on holiday and they have all stopped when I have just stood at the bus stop.

iammumtoone

mgdavid wrote: »

even if the bus stop sign had the word 'REQUEST' on it?

I haven't seen one like that, I dont know if I would think to look. I certainly will do from now on

jazabelle

hardpressed wrote: »

As someone who very very rarely uses a bus, I would expect if I was standing at a bus stop that the bus would stop. I don't think my children who only ever travelled on a school bus would know that either.

I suppose it depends on the area, but most of the bus stops in our town have buses passing on different routes, so just because you're standing at the bus stop doesn't mean you're going to want the next bus. They only then stop if you put your hand out, or they have someone who wants to get off. The bus stop will usually say request stop on it.

But you also have bus stops - usually in the centre of town where they will always (or are supposed to, anyway!) stop.

jellyhead

Awww bless them, it's something to laugh about next time they get a bus

These days a taxi is cheaper than a bus whereas when I was a child a taxi was an expensive luxury and the bus fare was the cheaper option. I get buses on my own sometimes but if I have a child with me it's cheaper to get a taxi.

My eldest got to be a teenager without ever knowing how to get a bus. The school bus doesn't need to be waved down and he lives less than 2 miles from school anyhow so he usually walks. We live a mile from college, town centre, swimming pool, bowling, cinema, etc. so he's never needed a bus to get to activities with friends. If they go to another town they get a train. My husband has a car, and when we catch a bus for days out we get it from a sort of terminus, so it always stops at that stop and you don't need to wave it down.

When he started year 10 one of his subjects was in town. Around 15 children needed to go to town, but only my son and one other boy needed to get off at a particular stop. Their tutor went with them because none of them were confident about how to catch a bus! By the second week, school had a minibus that took them all from school to the door of the college that the majority of the kids went to. My son and the other boy walked to their venue from there. Some of the other parents had expressed horror that their children had to leave school and cross a main road to get to the bus stop, then speak to a bus driver and get off at a bus stop rather than directly outside the college door

I think the main reason for getting a minibus was timings - they had to leave their science lesson halfway through in order to catch a bus for college. But it was still a surprise to me that so many of them were clueless about buses, and my son actually said he was scared of catching one, at age 14!

I took him with me to catch a bus, and talked him through the whole experience including waving like a wally to flag the bus down

DUKE

As a 30+ year old many years ago I couldn't understand why the buses kept passing me by - I was actually standing by a telegraph pole rather than the bus stop

paulineb_2

hardpressed wrote: »

As someone who very very rarely uses a bus, I would expect if I was standing at a bus stop that the bus would stop. I don't think my children who only ever travelled on a school bus would know that either.

You have to put your hand out to signal that you want a bus where I live, apart from the specific part of town I live in because theres only one bus that goes past during peak hours anyway so the drivers know that if you are standing there, you get on

I was using public transport when I was about 12 I think, my mum doesnt drive and I still dont so I use buses all the time, mainly as they are cheaper than train fares around here.

Spendless

The bus stop in question all buses travel exactly the same route. You still have to put your hand out for it to stop though. I hadn't thought about reminding DS about the etiquette needed as he's occassionally caught one (admittedly not often) and only after it happened did I think about DD never having seen me catch a bus to somewhere, only from a terminus. The fare is around £3-3.50 for a single where I am for an adult, slightly more for a return. This is why with having a car, I rarely use them.