OT rant School busses

[Anonymous-0]

Followed a local middle school bus today for about 45 minutes.It stopped about every 100 yards,picked up 1 kid and went to the next driveway. What got me was the fat mothers drove the fat kids to the end of the driveway from the house,total distance 200 yards at most,gets out,helps the kid put on his/her backpack,then walks the kid to the bus,and then has a 1-2 minute BS session with the bus driver. This wasn't a one time occurance it was every 2nd or third stop.
These weren't little kids,they were probably 13-15 years old,good clear warm morning.Why the heck can't they walk a little bit and meet at a designated stop instead of every house? Makes you wonder what these kids will do when they get out in the real world,if the mommies ever cut the apron strings.

 

[n8terry]

i think that fat butts rule nowdays. Is this good or bad?

 

[Anonymous-0]

I hear Ya' There!... All the Above, and School Busses don't drive the Speed limit either, I almost got run down on a gravel Road the other day. the Guy must have been running 45-50MPH on that narrow road. Well, I Guess I'm done for now. Larry KF4LKU

 

[Anonymous-0]

you hit the nail on the head.just try and get them to one stop and all hel- will brake lose most want them to be pickup at the door . our tax dollers at work

 

[Davis In SC]

We used to have to walk over half a mile. to and from the bus stop..

I do feel sorry for the kids on our road though, although the bus will stop at every house, it picks them up at 6 AM. and they do not get home until 5.

 

[RobMD]

You live in MD? Where at? We have horrible school bus drivers in MD. They're insane maniacs and the stops only make it worse

 

[Anonymous-0]

i drove bus for 10 years and I'll tell you one thing the kids [[[ARE NOT]]] the problem it's the da- parents if you like it or not that's what it is every parent wants it there way. everyone should drive a bus for two weeks and you will see the worst in people

 

[RobMD]

One of my friends has a sticker that says "no fat heifers- truck will tip over"

 

[Ryne]

I'll add alittle i was following a bus today from our school district and when the stops were comin up the driver would wait til last minute to turn on the yellow flashing lights, fortunately i knew where a few of the stops were and i was already slowin down. One of the drivers from our district i know told me once they lights should be activated at least 200 ft in advance from the stop. anyone have this problem
my 2 cents
Ryne

 

[old]

Yep I usto walk a mile or more in most places I lived or ride a bike but now days to let a kid walk a 100 yards seems to be a sin. No wonder kids are lazy, fat and don't know what work is now days
Hobby farm

 

[Clint Youse MO]

If it was muddy we used to have to walk about 3/4 of a mile because the bus would not run on the rock road only time we got a ride to the bus was if it was raining or snowing and on the way home you had better just walk fast and change out of the wet clothes at home. if it was dry got picked up at end of driveway but we lived a half mile from the kid before us and 2 miles from the next.

 

[Anonymous-0]

If these kids get any fatter we will have to start putting tag axles on the busses.

I definately think some parents need a reality check.

 

[Old Ford Mechanic]

Yep when i was a pup had to walk 5 miles to school and back home everyday.Uphill both ways!

 

[John S-B]

Call the school board to complain. If my kids aren't at the driveway or at least on the way, they miss the bus. Our drive is 200' and they walk out there rain or shine.

 

[Tim in OR]

I followed the buss one day last week. It was nice to see the little kids and their parents. The one stop that got to me was the one where the bus stopped, turned on the lights, picked up the kids, then turned into the driveway for the school. I guess it is too far for the mothers to walk their young kids across the road ( it seemed to me that they hadden't missed any doughnuts either).
Tim in OR

 

[NE IA Dave]

Unlike most of you folks that walked ten miles to school up hill both ways, I walked less than fifty feet to get on the bus. We lived down a lane that was once a county road so the bus had to come down it.

Oh yea, by the way the fat did show up fifty years later and seems it will be around a while.

I agree with all your posts, but would ya all like the kids fourteen and up to be a drivin to school like they do around here? It concerns me alot as they don't seem to grow up as fast as we did, and understand what can go wrong. My parents are dead and gone now so they can't weigh in on this discusion.

Most of us are from the old school and live in rural areas so we do not understand the parents keeping a close eye on their children. I guess we should all read our newspapers, and listen to the news.

I'm not into sports at all, so my opinion has a dark cloud over it. That being said our school will perhaps someday just be called a sports only school. ABC's are taught by the cheeeeeerleders as they make letters with their body parts. As you all can tell my spelling isn't so good, and I went to school when it was considered some what important. Now the foreign language and sports get top ranking.

We consolidated our schools to survive, then we divided the classes in half so we keep the student / teacher ratio small. hummmmmm?

When I get tired I rant on and on, but a seat belt ticket in Iowa will get your attention. Only the very ---(fill in your own word here)-- folks say they are better off with out a seat belt. The rest of us get it. So why not at least offer a child the option of a seat belt in a school bus?

I have to tell you about my son when he was six. He decide that on very cold mornings he should be driven to school because all the other kids were. I told him that warming the cold car up just to drive him to school so he could be treated like all the other kids was out of the question because I could not aford the time or gas to do so. He understood that I wouldn't give in so he put on sad face and winter attire and walked directly across the street to the school house.

 

[Anonymous-0]

Amen

 

[Anonymous-0]

It has been a very long time since I drove a schoolbus but I did in 1967 when students were allowed to drive. Made about 65.00 per month as I recall. I do remember that you could not through out the stop sign 200 ft. in advance in heavy traffic. Can you imagine going down the street in heavy traffic with the stop sign out 200 ft before the stop. Everyone would be slamming on their brakes for fear of running a school bus stop sign, maybe even causing a lot of rear enders. The bus drivers are using common sense when putting out the sign rather than creating havoc on the streets.

 

[Jimmy King]

That doesn"t bother me half as much as following one at night with that flashing strobe light that will put you in a trance and cause you to run into the bus then. Some things that are for safety are dangerious in my oppinion.

 

[Dave from MN]

Society is so unsafe for kids these days that parents, most anyway are over protective, for some good reasons, but still over protective. So most kids are not called upon to do things at early ages like we were. Which for us made us mature and learn early. Most kids sit in front of a tv or video game eating cheeto's until it is time for that heat and eat supper. Parents its the same only it's a tv, of online, or out with freinds like a 21 year old. You know when I turned 16, myself and bout every one I know, worked, everyday. We partied and did the other stupid stuff we all do, but we were for the most part much more mature and responsible than todays 20 somethings. The local and state governments having so much legal say in how you discepline your kids isnt helping either. My oldest daughters mother( 1st long relationship) now has a 14 year old that has pissy attitude about everything, will not do anything. Well, she got in trouble one day for not getting up in time for the bus( the momm works at 5 am, well she was told her arse is grass, well this girl tells her school counselor, now there is a social worker involved and this mother cant spank( which she never really did anyway), yell, threaten with discepline, or physically make her daughter do something, or she could be considered to be abusing her daughter in one way or another. She was told she needs to compromise with her daughter. So when she asked her to do the dishes, the young 14 year old simply says NO, and then proceeds to look at her ma till she does them herself. I learned at 4 not to tell my parents NO, I didnt want to ever know what would happen if I dis obeyed my folks. Now just think what these young people will raise their kids like.

 

[Lanse]

My bus driver accually goes over the speed limit, or on it. We still have these fat kids though, and some driveways are only 50's long or so. I am pretty used to going to care for my chickens now when it gets light, aster feeding myself and before catching the bus. If I miss it, I get a nice long bike ride. Be fair, I wait for the bus in the kitchen, then when it stops 1/4 mile up the road I bolt out the door and get to the road when it does. It works too!!!

 

[Mike M]

I asked that seat belt question to a bus inspector/ex state patrolman and he said that they feared the seat belts would cause more harm as they would be used as weapons. Think about it ? The heavy buckle end banging you upside the head ! Someone wrapping it around the neck and choking you ? why stop at seat belts ? put full curtain air bags and anti-stop brakes on too.

School buses are actually the safest things on the road. Maybe we all should drive one ? at least the are still using alot of metal building them.

 

[Alex-41JDb]

There have been several accidents caused by school bus drivers in my town. One pulling out right infront of a car and another rear ending a car at 40mph that was at a dead stop. But you have to give them a break, think of 40 screaming brats that you cant punish raising cane while you are trying to wheel that big a** thing around. But most of all blame the parents that let the kids get fat and lazy and rude.

 

[Walt Davies]

When I was real young we had to walk a 1/2 mile to end of the road to catch the bus the 5 miles to school. Later they built a new brig across the creek and all I had to do was step out the front door cross the lawn and get on the bus. If I missed it no problem because we lived on dead end road and the bus had to come back by the house.
We were skinny as hell and I still don't know why because i had all I wanted to eat and not much hard work in the winter time. I see kids now that are just fat and lots of them I wonder if its something besides the food that we are eating. Also why did all of sudden kids started growing 5 to 10 in. taller than their folks this just ain't normal it has to be something in the food.
I think we really need to look at all those additives and see how many of them are causing over weight and over height kids.
Walt

 

[Katharine]

Sorry to butt my two cent's worth in here, but being a MOM myself, I raise my children the same way I WAS raised, "The hand of knowledge, applied to the seat of learning" is what my mother ued to call it then and she still call's it that today!

As far as your daughter having a hard time with her daughter telling her "NO" she won't do something, then fine, "NO!" I won't cook for you, you can eat P-nut butter sandwiches, (my job to feed you, your job to eat it, nobody said it had to be gourmet) cable is canceled in your room, you can wash your own clothes down at the laundromat and find yourself a ride there or catch the bus AND buy your own laundry soap too, dear, the phone is gone, cellular and land line for her use, the stereo is gone, the allowance is gone, your clothing allowance is gone, your ability to do just about anything other than your homework is GONE, and I would STRIP her room and let her sleep on the floor for awhile.

I paid for all of your furniture, lights, clothes, food etc... and I will take them ALL away, until you learn to behave!!

Period.

But, just my opinion and what I have done with my two at various levels to varying degrees....
Heirloom Country Farms

 

[RWK in WI]

In our local paper this week was the outcome of a court proceding, a 17 year old sued her parents for giving her a 10 year old car to drive to school, she wanted a new car with all the safety things and all the gadgets. A female judge found for the kid, Ordered the parents to buy her a new car that would satisfy the child at a cost to not exceed $40,000 and $100,000. in punitive damages for causing the kid stress.
Where is the justice ? ? ?

 

[Katharine]

I would turn the child over to the courts then...
He,he, I have NO mercy, yup let them be ward's of the state.....

No really, that's insane and certainly calls for an appeal and a BETTER lawyer for the parents....
Heirloom Country Farms

 

[Earl Ohl]

Mike, I've been driving school bus for a little over 28 years. In this job you get to see nearly all of what's good and bad about society in my opinion. The buses here run so that they are on the same time schedule every day, being at the same place within a minute or two everyday. In other words, being "on time". MOST of the local people here know when the bus will be on their road and will schedule themselves accordingly. However SOME local people do not realize that we follow the same schedule every day and therefore end up behind the bus sometimes. Occasionally I'll have someone come up to the bus and they'll complain about being behind me "every day". Then I'll ask them "Why don't you leave the house 5 minutes earlier and then you'll be ahead of the bus instead of behind it"? Usually they'll just look at me like I'm from Mars. As far as bus stops go, those are set up & scheduled by the local school district & approved by the school board. The driver has very little to say about them. As far as stopping at every driveway, If there are no sidewalks or another way a child can walk safely along a road or street, then the bus almost has to stop where the child's driveway meets the road, provided it is judged to be safe for the bus to stop there. Where I drive, in-town stops are done different than rural stops. In town, where there are sidewalks, there is a "group stop" on almost every block for the elementary kids. The older ones must walk to school. I agree about the fat parents and kids. A lot of times they could walk down the driveway and it would do them some good. I know about the BS sessions too. But remember, that driver is a public relations person as well as a driver. Sometimes parents feel they need to discuss something they feel is important. I try to get a phone number & call them after the bus run if they'll allow me to. I don't do small talk. I politely tell them "I have to go, I'm holding up traffic". You say they're 13-15 years old. You ask "Why the heck can't they walk a little bit and meet at a designated house?" Just recently we had some creep here locally try and lure a 17 year old girl into his pickup. If they're in a group or their parents are with them then they could walk a little, I'll agree. Alex talks about bad school bus drivers. There are a few bad school bus drivers out there & we all need to work to get them off the road. What you should do is call the contractor or the school district and report them. If that doesn't work then call the police.

 

[Alex-41JDb]

There are a few bad eggs in every group and I am by no way knocking drivers. Let me reitterate my first post by saying that it is a difficult job to wheel a big bus around with 40 screaming hellions. So the more power to ya.

 

[Ryne]

the amber lights are activated 200 ft in advance and the red lights and stop sign are activated when the door is opened on a pressure switch the new set up is alittle different that the old one because of the reason you mentioned.