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I don't think it's nuts, but what I have learned is that the bigger the group, the harder it is to coordinate. It probably works with the pairs because the moms and kids are friends.

Are you friendly with these parents? I know this comes across as terrible, but I would only consider it if I were friends with the moms in a way that we were understanding about the pitfalls.

I think it sounds like a great idea!
I think you would have to set it up just like a carpool. When I was in middle school there were three moms who drove 4-5 kids every morning. I think it worked like this:

Each mom drove for a whole week - even if their child was sick. If the kid wasn't standing next to the car by a certain time, carpool left without them.

So yes it would take coordination, but I think its a great idea! My other concern is safety. Crossing streets, kids fighting and pushing, 1 mom without enough hands.
So perhaps you could do it in pairs? Or could you also get that rope thing that daycares use? Here is a link for visual reference: https://images.kaplanco.com/catalog/largepopup/26342.jpg

Let us know if it works out!

I imagine those moms walk together because they are friends and enjoy catching up with each other each morning. Since you're new to the school age crowd, I would walk with others for a while and see if there's even a desire to consolidate drop off duties before stepping in and suggesting this.

I really like this idea. There are definitely groups that walk together in our neighborhood but it’s typically led by an older kid and they only walk like 2-3 blocks (we live in WNY so weather is bad most of the year and lots of parents drop off in elementary school)., so parents can stay home with younger sibs or whatever they need to do. I’m guessing they just shoot a text to another parent if so and so won’t be going to school. Everyone lives so close that it would be nbd if they had to bring their own kids one day that wasn’t there’s or if the big kid was sick. I also think schools would really encourage this (efforts to promote walking school buses are often supported by state ed) so you could even ask the principal if there’s and existing structure in place that would help you find families to do this with.

@Corduroy: I personally wouldnt want to wait on other kids since some can run late etc... I also wouldn't want to be dependent on other peoples personal schedules, sick days etc so for me it would be a no.

Portland Maine had a pilot project called the walking school bus that was a huge success. Here is the link. Its not interchangeable with you idea, but i'm putting it out there just for reference!

https://eastend.portlandschools.org/for_parents/for_students/walking_school_bus

I plan on doing this with a parent on my street as well as a friend whose son goes to the same preschool as my toddler. But I imagine it to be pretty casual at first until we get into a routine. And if it wasn’t gonna work that morning/afternoon, I imagine all it takes is a text to say kid is sick, etc.