Hellobee Boards

I just saw on the local news a man in a white van is riding around trying to get elementary school children to get in. This is in the burbs too. It's not like the old days anymore. Yep, I will wait with her!

The bus stop for our zoned high school is at 6:30 am on the corner of two rather busy streets ( I know because we drive by all the cars parked on the sides of the road on our way to work in the morning).

I'll be waiting with my son, if I can. There are too many stories about people driving around in vans like @dc yoga bee mentioned. The burbs aren't as safe as they used to be!

I hope to walk her until she is much older, but yes if a bus is involved!

In our area the buses pick you up at your house (because they only do bus services for those kids who live out in the country) so this was never an issue. We just walked up our driveway when we knew it was time for the bus to be coming.

No, because we live too close for a bus stop do they will walk.

The story about the van though reminded me of news stories I've seen around here. In one a grandparent was watching her kids wait to get on the bus. One of her neighbors drove past and started yelling at the kids to get in the car. The woman went outside yelling at her to stop and then realized why the neighbor had done it - their was a mountain lion approaching the kids at the bus stop!

And then ANOTHER time there was four kids waiting at the bus stop when a mountain lion appeared right as the bus pulled up. The bus driver opened the door and yelled at the kids to get on. She said they all four piled on at the same time.

So maybe around here you should wait!

Yeah, we've had bears at our bus stop before. So my parents always waited with us in the morning. In the afternoon we let ourselves in and called my mom to let her know we were home safe. She worked across the street, so she could hear the bus.

It depends on the age, but I'll wait with them at least nearby until they are older. We may also just drop off at school if we can. Districts are weird around here, we may go outside our district for a better quality school.

I walked myself to school and back. But times have changed and I'll be with my kids when they go to and from school. Actually times started to change when I was in school. A van once followed me as I was walking home and I ran home and called the police.

Don't statistics about kidnappings and attempted abductions show that times HAVEN'T changed? That's what I've been reading for... well, basically for as long as I've been interested in children's safety.

Our kids will walk to school if we are unable to drive them. Currently, I work from home, so I have the flexibility to drop them off, but if that changed, they would walk in a group of friends (like I did) starting at 2nd grade-ish.

Right now, we live in an urban area and there is no school bus, so it's more likely we'll talk her to and from school (well, to and from aftercare since DH and I both work).

@sunshineandsushi: I bet that is a huge contributing factor. I did a quick Google search and found this article: http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/five-myths-about-missing-children/2013/05/10/efee398c-b8b4-11e2-aa9e-a02b765ff0ea_story.html

So it seems like the rate has changed... but it's declining, which is good news!

My husband feels differently about this, but I don't plan to wait with my kids. I was always dropped off at elementary school. In junior high, starting in 7th grade, I took public transportation to school and waited on my own.

i don't think they even have bus rides in the county i'm in. but if they do, i'll definitely wait. i don't trust the people out there.

we live in the walk zone of the elementary school. My kids will walk alone to school, or perhaps with friends, as soon as they are old enough to. The world has never been a safer place, and I want them to grow up feeling that.