Teenagers travelling alone

Armchair23

My feeling is that if your kids haven't got to understand public transport by the age of 14 either you're living in a really rural situation or you've really not got to grips with things at all.

People don't become aware of danger, or become competent map and timetable readers overnight. You start off with local journeys or ones that have got a bit of leeway and build from there.

I can think of no more incompetent (or deadly dull) person than a 16 year old with no experience of long distance public transport. We're supposed to be making them into competent adults not giving them lifts well into our 70's

All over the country kids 11+ travel to school using buses, tubes and trains. They'll build a knowledge of how to deal with problems and how the world works. It's a skill that's good to have, adaptability, problem solving and a sense of independence.

Yup there will problems and mistakes that's how it's supposed to be, you have the chance to guide and inform afterwards.

Lily-Rose_3

Armchair23 wrote: »

My feeling is that if your kids haven't got to understand public transport by the age of 14 either you're living in a really rural situation or you've really not got to grips with things at all.

People don't become aware of danger, or become competent map and timetable readers overnight. You start off with local journeys or ones that have got a bit of leeway and build from there.

I can think of no more incompetent (or deadly dull) person than a 16 year old with no experience of long distance public transport. We're supposed to be making them into competent adults not giving them lifts well into our 70's

All over the country kids 11+ travel to school using buses, tubes and trains. They'll build a knowledge of how to deal with problems and how the world works. It's a skill that's good to have, adaptability, problem solving and a sense of independence.

Yup there will problems and mistakes that's how it's supposed to be, you have the chance to guide and inform afterwards.

And THIS is the kind of comment I am talking about?!

REALLY?!

Incompetent and deadly dull? If a child has little or no experience of using long haul public transport at 16, they are incompetent?! What an absurd and insulting sweeping generalisation.

If you think that sending a child off on a train on their own on a long journey, is the way to make them competent adults, then I fear for humanity. There is a LOT more to being smart and competent and mature and independent than being able to travel from London to Hull and back on your own at 14!

Good grief. I can't believe what some of the people on this thread are coming out with!

I'm outta here!

eamon

Multiple car families are part of this issue but they are imho a response to the failures of public transport in many parts of the UK. If a child is accustomed to using bus/train/tube/tram with a parent of indeed older siblings then they benefit from all that learned behaviour. I'm just sad that many of todays young adults will never experience the joys and frustrations of hitching a lift to the nearest town or indeed different countries.

Jagraf

Lily-Rose wrote: »

And THIS is the kind of comment I am talking about?!

REALLY?!

Incompetent and deadly dull? If a child has little or no experience of using long haul public transport at 16, they are incompetent?! What an absurd and insulting sweeping generalisation.

If you think that sending a child off on a train on their own on a long journey, is the way to make them competent adults, then I fear for humanity. There is a LOT more to being smart and competent and mature and independent than being able to travel from London to Hull and back on your own at 14!

Good grief. I can't believe what some of the people on this thread are coming out with!

I'm outta here!

Please don't, your advice is fab. To me public transport is a means to an end but which can also get you to places to enjoy stuff, but you can alo enjoy stuff by having a lift.

Personally there's nothing more dull than someone thinking public transport is exciting

elsien

Started travelling by plane with twin brother when we were 10. In theory we had escorts as unaccompanied minors, but we used to give them the slip and make our own way. Including sorting the flights if we missed the connection. Small for her age 11 year old standing at an airline help desk looking sad gets more help than an adult would.
Buses however scared the life out of me at the same age because I'd never used them and it's far easier to get the wrong bus than the wrong plane. It's down to experience, knowing what to expect and what to do if it does go pear shaped.

missbiggles1

Lily-Rose wrote: »

And THIS is the kind of comment I am talking about?!

REALLY?!

Incompetent and deadly dull? If a child has little or no experience of using long haul public transport at 16, they are incompetent?! What an absurd and insulting sweeping generalisation.

If you think that sending a child off on a train on their own on a long journey, is the way to make them competent adults, then I fear for humanity. There is a LOT more to being smart and competent and mature and independent than being able to travel from London to Hull and back on your own at 14!

Good grief. I can't believe what some of the people on this thread are coming out with!

I'm outta here!

If young people of 16 (old enough to get married and/or join the army) have no experience of independent travel then it's their parents who are incompetent, not them.:D

Savvy_Sue

Jagraf wrote: »

At what age would you / do you let your teen:

Travel by national express on their own to visit a relative
Travel by train up and down the country
Travel by tube across London
Travel on a plane on their own (if dropped off and met the other end).

Bearing in mind legal requirements, would you let a relatively sensible 15/16 year old do all of the above.

I don't think we needed to do any of them except the plane until they were over 16: DS1 flew off to France for his work experience.

But they were well used to getting the bus to and from school, and we're in a big city.

DS1 was always fine, he has an excellent sense of direction. DS2 could get lost in a paper bag, but took the train to London, crossed it by tube, and made it out the other end for Uni interviews. DS3 is more like DS1.

eamon wrote: »

I'm just sad that many of todays young adults will never experience the joys and frustrations of hitching a lift to the nearest town or indeed different countries.

DS1 has done some charity hitching a few times, I'm quite glad his phone battery ran out before I discovered that the driver had been stopped by police near the Polish border and he and his friend had been left in the middle of nowhere to sort themselves out!

He then went hitching with a girl (not a g/f), who'd never hitched before, didn't realise DS1 had only done it once, and only told her parents what she was doing after they'd left. I'd insisted on having her phone number and her parents' number, following DS2's experience not long beforehand.

He and two friends were inter-railing. They split up for the day in Belgium, arranging to meet at the station at a particular time to move on to Germany. Only two of them made it. They didn't know what to do. Their phones weren't working (not enabled for roaming, we discovered soon afterwards!) They didn't have a number for the missing friend's parents. DS2 had lost his passport.

And so on ... All ended well, but I was a bit of wreck. And he was 18+ so couldn't be stopped! :rotfl:

Jagraf

missbiggles1 wrote: »

If young people of 16 (old enough to get married and/or join the army) have no experience of independent travel then it's their parents who are incompetent, not them.:D

I don't think its ideal to marry at 16 - not many see it as sensible. And when you join the army at 16 you are usually inexperienced also.

Are you saying that if you are not married or in the army at 16 then your parents are incompetent also?

Daft really, lots of kids have all kinds of experiences.

gettingtheresometime

missbiggles1 wrote: »

If young people of 16 (old enough to get married and/or join the army) have no experience of independent travel then it's their parents who are incompetent, not them.:D

Why do people always quote this - currently about the eu vote.

People can only get married with their parent's permission and if you join the forces,again you have to have parent's permission as well and aren't sent into a combat zone until you are 18

missbiggles1

Jagraf wrote: »

I don't think its ideal to marry at 16 - not many see it as sensible. And when you join the army at 16 you are usually inexperienced also.

Are you saying that if you are not married or in the army at 16 then your parents are incompetent also?

Daft really, lots of kids have all kinds of experiences.

In my experience, young people who are strangers to independent travel by public transport have little experience of other typs of independence.